(Photo | by A Smith, courtesy of COCC)
Grant Program Reaches Five More Community Colleges in the 2022-2023 School Year
The Roundhouse Foundation, which supports innovative programs in Oregon’s rural communities, has expanded its Career and Technical Education (CTE) grant program, which assists and encourages community college students pursuing specific study areas. The program reduces some of the financial barriers that can keep students from accessing credentials and skills for jobs in high-demand sectors.
Funding will support hundreds of students enrolled in credit-earning CTE programs, including automotive and diesel technology, early childhood education, fire science, forest resources technology, manufacturing technology, veterinary technology, dental assistant programs, welding technology and others.
“Sometimes these programs are overlooked with scholarship dollars,” said Erin Borla, executive director and trustee of the Roundhouse Foundation. “My hope is that these students see and hear that people believe in them and want them to succeed.”
The Roundhouse Foundation decided to expand the grant program for the current 2021-2022 school year following the success of the initial pilot program at Central Oregon Community College the previous year. The five additional Oregon community college CTE programs that were selected for the 2021-2022 school year were Columbia Gorge Community College, Rogue Community College, Tillamook Bay Community College, Treasure Valley Community College and Klamath Community College.
The foundation now plans to continue expanding this vital program for the 2022-2023 school year. It will work with the six current community college partners and has selected five more community colleges to participate as well. The names of those community colleges will be announced this summer.
Students do not apply for the grant — funds are awarded to every student in select study areas to assist with materials needed for class, beyond tuition and books. For example, welding technology students receive funds to buy protective clothing and equipment specific to welding. Early childhood education students can use grant funds to buy creative educational materials to bolster development of new forms of teaching.
As the job market continues to transform, CTE programs such as these provide credentials and training for a wide range of high-wage, highly skilled jobs. Because some of these programs do not include a formal college degree, funding has traditionally been difficult to secure.
The supported CTE programs align with The Roundhouse Foundation’s vision of creating a positive impact through collaboration with communities and encouraging creative problem solving and innovative programming to stimulate local economies. At this time, participation in this program is by invitation only for selected community college partners.
