Penn State to use $1.5M grant on workforce programs in New Kensington

Penn State will use a $1.5 million federal grant to create workforce education and retaining programs targeting Southwestern Pennsylvania, the university announced Wednesday.

The university’s New Kensington campus, located in Upper Burrell, and its Digital Foundry, under construction in downtown New Kensington, will lead the project.

It will be known as “Growing and Reskilling Our Workforce in Pennsylvania,” or GROW PA.

The project is being funded through a third round of Workforce Opportunity for Rural Communities Initiative grants from the federal Employment and Training Administration in partnership with the Appalachian Regional Commission and Delta Regional Authority.

“With the rapid and continuing advancements in how technology and innovation are affecting our workplaces, this grant goes a long way in helping the Digital Foundry prepare today’s and tomorrow’s workers from our area so that they are ready to take on those jobs,” Mayor Tom Guzzo said. “The role that the Digital Foundry has taken on is so vitally important. And I’m thrilled and excited that this is happening in our city.”

Funded entirely by the grant, GROW PA will address site, work and operation readiness, according to the university.

Site readiness includes addressing the challenges of regional manufacturing with access to credentialing programs and hands-on training tools and equipment.

Work readiness covers creating pathways and providing work-ready training to a targeted number of individuals such as new entrants, dislocated workers, veterans and current workers, and providing advanced manufacturing technologies and training to local businesses.

Operation readiness includes establishing an operating model to deliver technical skills, training and credentials, and social support services, events and recruiting tools to connect trainees to employment opportunities.

“This grant and our mission at the Digital Foundry at New Kensington are all about building the foundation to support a strong pipeline of current and future talent and innovative technology,” Digital Foundry Executive Director Sherri McCleary said.

McCleary, an executive with 33 years of experience in technology deployment at companies like Alcoa and Kennametal, joined the project last year.

“If we want to have a pipeline that sustains both current and future talent needs and promotes the implementation of game-changing technologies, we need to be investing in our local talent at all levels and across all demographics,” she said.

The Richard King Mellon Foundation awarded $5.5 million for the Digital Foundry, being built on Fifth Avenue and expected to open next year. Penn State has provided $1 million in matching support, which will help create an endowment for the facility’s ongoing operation.

The Digital Foundry is a collaborative effort between Penn State New Kensington and the Economic Growth Connection of Westmoreland.