Cincinnati State, partners win $19.6 million health training grant

September 27, 2011

Cincinnati State learned Monday that it will be the lead partner with nine other community colleges across the country in a $19.6 million federal workforce training grant that targets the health professions.

The grant was announced Monday by the U.S. Department of Labor, as part of a $500 million round of workforce training awards to community colleges by the Obama administration.

“This award is a wonderful testament to the great work already being done by our college and will be a great help in achieving my first priority, to enhance our student success,’’ said Cincinnati State President O’dell M. Owens. “My plan for every student coming to Cincinnati State is that he or she will leave with at least one credential and the 21st Century skills wanted by employers locally, and nationally.”

Part of the impetus for the Cincinnati State grant came from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as a result of its research into a pioneering health workforce training program launched in Cincinnati. That program, known as the Health Careers Collaborative, has seen Cincinnati State, hospitals and other organizations in the area work together to help individuals get the training they need to land jobs or improve their chances for promotion if they already have jobs.

Under the three-year grant announced Monday, Cincinnati State will be the lead partner in what will be known as the Health Professions Consortium.

Consortium partners include Anoka-Ramsey Community College and Pine Technical College in Minnesota; El Centro College and Texarkana College in Texas; Ashland Community and Technical College and Jefferson Community and Technical College in Kentucky; Owens Community College in Ohio; City Colleges of Chicago in Illinois; and Community College of the District of Columbia.

The consortium has three major goals:

• Provide low-skilled workers with adequate preparation, support and opportunities to complete postsecondary training in health professions that provide credentials aligned with job advancement
• Expand and enhance the health care workforce with the competencies needed by industry
• Build the capacity of community colleges to continuously assess student and employment outcomes and use this information to improve the quality of health professions programs.

"These federal grants will enable community colleges, employers and other partners to prepare job candidates, through innovative programs, for new careers in high-wage, high-skills fields, including advanced manufacturing, transportation, health care and STEM occupations," stated Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis in making the announcements this morning.

Cincinnati State will receive about $6.5 million from the grant over its three year life. In addition to managing the grant, the College will use a portion of the funds to create a Pathway to Employment Center (PTEC), to employ a strategy focused on enhancing student retention, completion and employment placement.

The PTEC is essentially a “one-stop” career assessment, planning and placement center. It provides each individual with at least one credential that demonstrates competency and skills to potential employers. The concept recognizes that most adult learners face a myriad of obstacles to timely academic study and completion.

Dr. Marianne Krismer, Dean of Health & Safety at Cincinnati State, said the federal grant will show the value of partnerships and have national as well as local results.

“The work of Cincinnati State in its partnership with the Health Careers Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati provided unique and promising career pathway developments in healthcare supported by local healthcare employers,” Dr. Krismer said. “This work caught the attention of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which convened a national consortium that ultimately led to the invitation for Cincinnati State to serve as the lead applicant and administrator. Not only will this national partnership afford greater opportunities for national career development in healthcare, but it will provide Cincinnati State with the resources to expand its capacity to support student success and employment.”

For more information contact Dean Marianne Krismer, Ed. D. at marianne.krismer@cincinnatistate.edu or Lawra Baumann, Ph.D., Director of Grant Administration at lawra.baumann@cincinnatistate.edu.