Greater Lawrence Technical School was awarded a $60,000 state grant this week during a visit by Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.
Superintendent John Lavoie said the money will be used to support workforce development programming for adults studying advanced manufacturing. It allows Greater Lawrence Tech to offer a one-week boot camp to adult students in contextualized English for English Learners and a one-week mathematics boot camp. Approximately 20 students will participate in the camps, beginning in January.
“We cannot solve the workforce skills gap with only student graduates from high schools, we need to tap into the adult community that is looking to re-skill or up-skill to these new skills needed for this economy,” Polito said. “And to open up schools and classrooms like this so that people can access the training so they can plug into jobs that are here, that are growing and also pay more.”
Besides Greater Lawrence Tech, which serves Andover, Lawrence, Methuen and North Andover, Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School also received a grant under the program.
Among those in attendance were Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy, Reps. Frank A. Moran, Christina Minicucci and Jeffrey Roy. Brian Norris, director of the Northeast Advanced Manufacturing Consortium, also spoke.
Polito announced $2.5 million in grants to four regional consortiums through the state’s Advanced Manufacturing Training Program to support workforce development in advanced manufacturing programs. The grants seek to support schools as they craft advanced manufacturing training programs and opportunities to ensure students are receiving the necessary workforce development to succeed in careers in advanced manufacturing. The funding also aims to address the needs of the manufacturing industry in the Commonwealth and its need for more trained workers.