Blueprint for Success
A New Architecture for Business and Workforce
In June 2009 the Tri-County Workforce Investment Board (Hancock, Piscataquis and Penobscot Counties) and the Chief Local Elected Officials took the first step to building a more effective economic and workforce system for the region by hiring the region's economic development agency, Eastern Maine Development Corporation to also deliver the Workforce Investment Act services. EMDC now houses both the Workforce Investment Board (WIA) and is the service provider for all Workforce Investment Act services in the Tri-County region. Housing the workforce program board and the WIA operations with economic development services under one roof provides the region an opportunity to develop a new architecture for the area's economic and workforce development systems - one that is unique in the State of Maine.
With the support of Maine's Northstar Alliance Grant, the Maine Department of Labor and the Department of Economic and Community Development, EMDC has been working over the past several months to realign its traditional economic development mission to create the elements of this new architecture for the region's business and workforce systems.
NBRC Grant Funds Now Available
Sandy Blitz, the Federal Co-Chair of the
Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC), announced that the next round of
grant funds are now available for federal assistance, and, will begin accepting
applications. Chairman Blitz stated that
“It is our goal to award approximately $1.2 million by late Summer, 2013”. He
further indicated that the maximum grant for any applicant will be $200,000 of
NBRC funds.
Click here to learn more and access application documents or contact Jen Brooks, EMDC's Director of Strategic Initiatives at jbrooks@emdc.org or (207) 942-6389