Funding Available for Programs that Increase Access to College and Career Education in Vermont

The J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation has announced available funding for the 2018-19 school year for efforts that improve equitable access to the postsecondary and career education that leads to Vermont’s most promising jobs. A supporting organization of the Vermont Community Foundation, the McClure Foundation envisions a Vermont where no promising job goes unfilled for lack of a qualified applicant.

The McClure Foundation’s primary interest is in funding projects with statewide impact that are aligned with multi-sector postsecondary attainment or workforce development efforts. For the 2018-19 school year, McClure Foundation funding will prioritize projects that accomplish one or more of the following: identify and/or eliminate barriers to postsecondary access and success for low-income and first-generation youth and adults; strengthen the pathways between education and employment; and change the narrative to ensure public recognition of postsecondary education and college and career readiness as a shared value.

A primary goal of the McClure Foundation’s grantmaking program is to improve education and training pathways to jobs listed in Pathways to Promising Careers, a resource published in partnership with the Vermont Department of Labor. Pathways identifies 54 promising jobs expected to pay at least $20/hour and have at least 100 openings over the next decade. The resource is available online at mcclurevt.org/pathways.

Nonprofits and municipal entities interested in applying for funding can submit a Letter of Interest (LOI) by 5:00 p.m. February 6, 2018. Additional information about the grant round is available at mcclurevt.org.