The Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) was awarded a two-year, $500,000 America Works grant from the Walmart Foundation to sustain the impact of OneKC WIRED, a regional workforce development initiative. The Kansas City region was one of seven regions chosen to receive a WIRED award.
The America Works initiative provides funds to established regional partnerships capable of implementing accelerated strategies that connect unemployed individuals to long-term, family-sustaining employment. Over the past four years OneKC WIRED has supported a regional network of public workforce agencies and private industry partners. These public agencies and private partners will work with MARC to implement the key objectives identified in the America Works grant:
- Sustain, and expand upon, the successes and accomplishments of the OneKC WIRED initiative.
- Develop a workforce data network to provide regional partners with updated, accurate and consistent information necessary to inform and improve the delivery of services for unemployed job seekers.
- Engage employers within the region to assess specific workforce needs to help partners make more proactive and informed program design decisions.
- Support the needs of existing sector partnerships developed through OneKC WIRED.
- Identify emerging sectors that could benefit from collaborating within a coordinated regional workforce development system of strategic partners.
“Like many other issues which face our region, the challenges of developing a highly skilled, globally competitive workforce transcend state and county lines,” said Marlene Nagel, MARC’s director of community development. “The Walmart Foundation recognizes the value of a coordinated regional effort. Thanks to the work of OneKC WIRED and its partners, the Kansas City region is positioned to invest these new funds to benefit our workforce and the region’s economy.”
The Walmart Foundation’s grant announcement is available here: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/walmart-foundation-donates-34-million-to-help-americans-get-back-to-work-89988242.html
About OneKC WIRED
The Kansas City region was among 13 chosen to receive a $15 million WIRED (Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development) grant from the U.S. Department of Labor in 2006. OneKC WIRED has created dynamic partnerships to support significant economic and workforce development changes. OneKC WIRED’s innovative approaches to workforce development have resulted in diverse, highly skilled, educated workers who improve the global competitiveness of the Kansas City region. www.OneKCWired.com
About Philanthropy at Walmart
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are proud to support the charitable causes that are important to customers and associates in their own neighborhoods. The Walmart Foundation funds initiatives focused on education, workforce development, economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and health and wellness. From Feb. 1, 2009, through Jan. 31, 2010, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation gave more than $512 million in cash and in-kind gifts globally, including donating 127 million pounds of nutritious food to U.S. food banks. To learn more, visit www.walmartfoundation.org.