CARIBOU — The Aroostook and Washington Counties Local Workforce Investment Board and the Northern Maine Development Commission have been awarded a $376,286 grant from the Maine Department of Labor as part of a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor for a statewide disability employment initiative. According to Ryan D. Pelletier, executive director of the Local Workforce Investment Board, the purpose of the grant funding is to improve the educational, training, and employment opportunities and outcomes for adults with disabilities, including asset development.
The project is designed to support integrated services and funding to explore individual and systematic issues concerning the employment of people with disabilities – with a view to facilitate innovative, long-term solutions.
“We are very excited that our workforce region has been selected to participate in this project and look forward to ensuring that people with disabilities have programmatic, physical, and communications accessibility to resources within our two county area,” said Barry D. McCrum, chairperson of the Local Workforce Investment Board.
Pelletier explained that an individual will be hired to serve as a disability resource coordinator during the grant term which ends Sept. 30, 2013.
“The individual will work primarily at the Presque Isle Career Center and the coordinator will provide expertise and serve as a resource person to the workforce investment system and to persons with disabilities helping them navigate the one-stop Career Center system and ensuring people have the resources and employment opportunities available,” Pelletier said.
