This content was published: August 31, 2009. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
PCC gets nearly 700K to serve dislocated workers
Photos and story by James Hill
In this tough economic environment where unemployment is in the double-digits, dislocated workers and local businesses just got some good news thanks to Portland Community College.
The college’s Grants Office has announced that it has received an 11-month $674,988 grant from Worksystems Inc. to expand existing WorkSource Center services. The money will help support job seekers who complete occupational skills training or who would benefit from on-the-job-training. It also will assist businesses in hiring and training new employees. The services are expected to begin next month.
“Currently we do not have staff that focus on helping people find on-the-job training opportunities,” said Jackie Sandquist, director of PCC’s workforce development program. “What this funding does is allow employers to hire people who may not have all of the skills they need to do the job, train the employee and get reimbursed 50 percent of the wage for the training time up to $5,000. And it allows job-seekers to develop their skills and have access to jobs that they may not have qualified for otherwise.”
The grant will expand funding and oversight for PCC’s WorkSource Centers in Multnomah and Washington Counties. PCC will coordinate services among all five WorkSource Centers, including Portland Metro Southeast (run by SE Works), Portland Metro East (run by Mount Hood Community College) across Worksystem’s Region 2 (Multnomah and Washington Counties), Hillsboro (SE Oak Street) and Tualatin (7995 SW Mohawk St).
For information about this grant, call Jackie Sandquist at (503) 533-2767.
About James Hill
James G. Hill, an award-winning journalist and public relations writer, is the Director of Public Relations at Portland Community College. A graduate of Portland State University, James has worked as a section editor for the Newberg Graphic... more »