Moraine Park Technical College was again awarded Workforce Advancement Training (WAT) grants from the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS). The College’s Economic & Workforce Development team submitted six grants for consideration for $1,178,314–the highest in the state for two consecutive years. Moraine Park received full funding for all 6 grants which will support over 54 companies and almost 7,000 hours of training. Approximately $5 million is available each year in the WAT competitive application process to fund projects in partnership with a single business or consortium of businesses. “We are continuously thankful to WTCS for the significant grant support,” JoAnn Hall, dean of economic and workforce development at Moraine Park, said. “WAT grants allow us to support our business partners through customized training– keeping them at the forefront of their strategic initiatives. These training projects will assist businesses in their employee engagement and retention efforts, supporting extensive skill development of their employees.” The grants were written for consortium initiatives in quality and advanced manufacturing, industrial maintenance, advanced automation and robotics, leadership, welding, fabrication and supervision. The Wisconsin Technical College System has distributed WAT grants since 2005 to support employers in their efforts to retain and advance the skills of their workforce. WAT grant funds promote increased investment in the development of incumbent workers, improve Wisconsin businesses’ productivity and competitiveness, and expand technical college training to local businesses and industry. The grant process involves discussions with company leaders from several business areas to uncover regional challenges and needs such as increasing sales, fulfilling greater customer demands, recruiting and retaining employees, and more. MPTC conducts a business assessment, and in collaboration with individual companies, develops a long-range strategic training plan that focuses on their specific goals. One example of this collaboration is Moraine Park’s partnership with Didion, a local company benefiting from specialized training made possible by grant funding. “The WAT grant and training program through MPTC is just one example of our commitment to investing in team member growth,” Amy Jones, director of human development at Didion, said. “Dedicated training like this empowers our team members to be more confident in their skills and increases pride in their new capabilities and knowing their impact will support our company-wide operational needs and personal growth.”
