information from South Seattle College

South Seattle College announced today that they have been awarded a $4.8 million grant through the American Apprenticeship Initiative Grant Program.

The American Apprenticeship Initiative Grant (AAIG) is funded through the Department of Labor with the aim of developing and implementing innovative, high-quality registered apprenticeship programs through public-private partnerships. The AAIG seeks to identify key innovations to train significant numbers of new apprentices and scale apprenticeship programs at a statewide, regional, or national level.

This grant was awarded to South to fund the Partnership for Advanced Technology Apprenticeships in Manufacturing and Marine Engineering project (PATAM). In support of South’s mission, this grant will serve 300 workers from underrepresented populations and at least 1,000 workers in the state. In collaboration with labor, employers, the workforce development community and several colleges, the grant will expand 12 existing programs in Advanced Manufacturing and create 3 new apprenticeships including the first in the nation Marine Engineering.

South’s grant application received an overwhelming amount of support from around the state, including the Puget Sound Regional Council, U.S. Senator Patty Murray and U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell and endorsement from the Washington State Apprenticeship & Training Council.

“Today’s grant will provide thousands of Washington state workers an earn-while-you-learn education to prepare for 21st century jobs,” Cantwell said.

South President Gary Oertli applauded her sentiments.

"We are thrilled with this historic investment in apprenticeship. Apprenticeship programs like these exemplify how partnerships between education and industry drive economic development for our region. By directly building a pipeline of trained employees for industry, our entire community benefits," said Oertli.

South’s $4.8 million dollar grant is a portion of a $175 million dollar investment backed by President Obama for apprenticeship training. This investment is the largest to date for this training in United States history.