Marshall, Moran, Davids Announce Over $1 Million Grant to Provide Occupational Training for Youth in Lenexa Area

Press Release

U.S. Senators Roger Marshall, M.D. and Jerry Moran, and U.S. Representative Sharice Davids issued the following statements today after the Department of Labor awarded $1,244,907 in funding to the Local Workforce Investment Area III Inc. in Lenexa to help youth ages 16-24 who are neither enrolled in school nor participating in the labor market to obtain employment in in-demand industries.

"It is through job training and education that we will truly get people back to work and rebuild our great economy," said Senator Marshall. "YouthBuild's efforts in conjunction with our state's Workforce Partnership will equip and empower young people with real-life job skills that will allow them to build promising careers and help fill the thousands of open jobs in Kansas. I applaud this substantial investment in the future of our state, and look forward to seeing the positive impact it has on the Lenexa community and Kansas as a whole."

"As Kansas businesses work to reopen to full capacity, this program will afford young Kansans new and encouraging career opportunities while helping support our state's economy," said Senator Moran. "As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to support Youthbuild and work with our federal agencies to make certain that Kansas is a priority when these resources are distributed, especially as our state recovers from the pandemic."

"I'm excited to see this investment in our local workforce through the Department of Labor and YouthBuild. Skills training programs like this provide long-term economic opportunities that uplift our entire community, benefitting workers and businesses alike," said Rep. Sharice Davids (KS-03). "I can't wait to see what YouthBuild can accomplish with this significant grant, and look forward to building more strong pipelines to good-paying jobs in our district."

Background:

Administered by the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration, YouthBuild grants support a pre-apprenticeship model to help these young people learn valuable occupational skills. They will split their time between workplace training and the classroom, where they earn their high school diploma or equivalency degree and prepare for postsecondary opportunities. The recipients of YouthBuild grants will deliver training and employment in several in-demand industries, including construction, where youth put their classroom learning to use in building or rehabilitating affordable housing for low-income or homeless families in their neighborhoods. They will also be prepared for employment in other in-demand industries such as healthcare, information technology, manufacturing and logistics, culinary arts and hospitality.

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