Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA ExecutiveDdirector/General Counsel, presents a ceremonial check for up to a $500,000 grant to the Mountain Empire Community College Foundation for workforce development and training. In the photo, from left, are Vickie Ratliff, MECC Vice President, Academic and Student Services; MECC President Dr. Kristen Westover; Belcher; Fran Doyle, MECC Dean, Business and IT; and Amy Greear, interim Director of Institutional Advancement, MECC Foundation.
LEBANON, Va. – March 27, 2018 – The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA) closed today on an up to $500,000 grant to the Mountain Empire Community College Foundation to be used for workforce development and training at Mountain Empire Community College (MECC).
The funds will be used for scholarships, tuition, and assessment fees, including administering National Career Readiness Certificate testing, to create and administer relevant courses to train and retrain the workforce for new jobs in the region. Students must be residents of the VCEDA region, which includes the counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell and Wise and the City of Norton.
“Being able to present workforce capabilities to those employers who are considering locating or expanding their businesses in the VCEDA region is important in VCEDA’s mission to enhance and diversify the region’s economic base,” said Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA executive director/general counsel. “We are pleased to be able to provide this grant funding to benefit the residents of the VCEDA region.”
“Mountain Empire Community College is appreciative of this grant which will allow the college to provide education and training opportunities to our students, now and in the future, that strengthen the region’s workforce and economy,” said Dr. Kristen Westover, president of MECC.
##
About Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority and Virginia’s e-Region: The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988 to enhance and diversify the region’s economy and help create jobs, markets Virginia’s e-Region and its focus on electronic information technology, energy, education and emerging technologies. VCEDA is a unique economic development organization that manages funds for economic development projects from a percentage of the coal and natural gas severance taxes paid by coal and natural gas companies that operate in the region. Located in southwestern Virginia, the region includes Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise counties and the City of Norton. www.vceda.us or www.e-Region.org.