UPDATED: Governor announces training grant at OTC in Ozark

Gov. Jay Nixon was in Ozark this afternoon to announce a new grant for training workers in high-demand fields.

Nixon was at Ozarks Technical Community College's Richwood Valley campus in Ozark to announce a new $1.1 million grant in the Training for Tomorrow program. Launched in January, the program is designed to create or expand training programs in growing industries, according to a news release from Nixon's office.

The state's community colleges identify work force needs and submit applications for funding to the Missouri Department of Economic Development. OTC will receive "significant funding" for training in nursing, health care, information technology, manufacturing and commercial truck driving, according to the release.

“In recent semesters, we’ve seen our enrollment skyrocket, and we simply don’t have the capacity to meet the demand from potential students," OTC President Hal Higdon said in a news release. "Training for Tomorrow will help us add new programs in high-demand fields and expand several existing programs. This will give more students the opportunity to learn the skills they need to succeed in the careers of tomorrow.”

Funding – which comes from the Second Supplemental Disaster Recovery Community Development Block Grant, a federal program to assist with economic recovery efforts – will go specifically to train OTC students to be nurses, dental assistants, hearing instrument specialists, medical technicians and pharmacy technicians.

Today was be Nixon's first trip to OTC to announce new training efforts. The governor visited the main Springfield campus in December to announce a $12 million statewide training program for high-tech and growing industries, and an October visit was the site of a roundtable discussion with area business leaders about the need to train more workers.
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