Community leaders hope a $20 million infusion will help equip students and workers with skills needed in high-tech manufacturing positions at northeast Indiana’s defense contractors.
The Community Foundation of Fort Wayne on Wednesday announced a $20 million grant from the Lilly Endowment to speed the development of the area’s workforce. The program, dubbed Talent Opportunity Success 2015, will help fill the 4,000 defense jobs expected to be created in the next five years in the region.
“This grant is critical in supporting the defense industry, an integral component of northeast Indiana’s financial health,” Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Chancellor Michael Wartell said.
Bruce Menshy, Raytheon operations director, said for his company and others to thrive they need a skilled workforce. Menshy worked with the foundation and other groups to tailor the program to the needs of advanced manufacturing.
The money will be spent in five ways:
•WorkOne Northeast will get $5.7 million to retrain at least 1,200 adult workers. This will include on-the-job training and certification and degree programs.
•Ivy Tech Community College will get $2.6 million to upgrade equipment in its Center for Excellence in Advanced Manufacturing. Chancellor Mark Keen, of Ivy Tech-Northeast, said the new equipment will allow his school’s students to learn the most up-to-date skills. He noted his school has seen an influx in students since the regional recreational vehicle industry collapsed.
“The timing could not be better,” he said of the grant.
•IPFW will get $4.5 million to increase the capacity of its engineering programs with two professor positions and upgraded equipment. It will specifically enhance the systems engineering and wireless-communications programs, as well as add computer-simulation laboratories.
•An additional $5 million will help support the launch of new-technology high schools throughout the region. It will also be used to increase proficiency in science, technology, engineering and math courses.
Kathy Friend, Fort Wayne Community Schools chief financial officer, said the district will apply for some of the money to help with Wayne High School’s transition to a new-tech curriculum.
Friend, who also is board chairwoman for the Community Foundation, said no grant amount or procedure has been set.
•The foundation will use the final $2.1 million to administer and market the Talent Opportunity Success plan to the community. John Sampson, president and CEO of the Northeast Indiana Regional Marketing Partnership, said a few people will likely need to be hired to run the program, but most of the money will be used to help inform the public how the money is being spent.
Community Partnerships Inc., a subsidiary of the Community Foundation, will be the group in charge of the grant and will be responsible for reporting how it is being used to the Lilly Endowment and other stakeholders.
The group is chaired by Reed Silliman, former managing partner of the Fort Wayne office of the Baker & Daniels law firm. The subsidiary was formed in 1994 and has helped the Community Foundation with other programs.
