Montco Community College Reminds Companies To Apply For Grant

POTTSTOWN, PA — Montgomery County companies may be eligible for reimbursements for their employee training costs, and they should apply now, according to Montgomery County Community College.

Montgomery County Community College’s Workforce Development Division encourages eligible Montgomery County companies to apply for WEDnetPA funding for the new fiscal year which began July 1.

WEDnetPA is a state training reimbursement grant program through which eligible companies can receive state grants to help pay for workforce training. MCCC receives an annual allocation, which it distributes to Montgomery County companies to help them defray the costs of workforce training.

Qualifying companies can receive up to a maximum of $100,000 annual award, and each Pennsylvania employee is eligible for up to $2,000 of training reimbursement. Eligible industries include manufacturing, healthcare, — certain restrictions apply — as well as information technology and any company with a commercial/industrial client base. Retail companies are not eligible.

Last year, MCCC received approximately $226,000 that enabled 20 area companies to train their workforce, increasing their competitive edge during this time of economic recovery, the Community College reported. MCCC is expecting to receive comparable funding this year.

MCCC said it typically allocates 75 percent of the available funding by the end of August, so companies should submit applications now.

WEDnetPA will pay for many types of training, including safety, continuous improvement, professional development, ESL, and technical skills, MCCC explained. A more complete list of training topics can be found at the WEDnetPA website.

MCCC said its Workforce Development Division will coordinate on-site or virtual training, tailoring curriculum specific to the needs of a company.

"Last year, during COVID, we were able to customize and deliver training virtually for companies via our qualified trainers, who are not only excellent teachers and subject-matter experts, but who currently work in the industry and are up-to-date with identifying company needs and solving problems," said Bernadette DeBias, MCCC’s Director of Workforce Development, who manages WEDnetPA for MCCC.

"We did a lot of management, customer service, leadership, and teamwork training last year, in addition to technical training," DeBias said. She explained, "Leaders and managers needed to be equipped with skills that would enable them to keep their departments moving and working together in a virtual environment under a lot of stress,” DeBias added. “In today’s environment, where it is difficult to find and retain qualified talent, it is more important than ever to invest in training your workforce."

To apply for WEDnetPA funding grants, companies should begin to submit applications now for the new fiscal year. Companies strategically can submit training plans for the entire fiscal year, from July 2021 through June 30, 2022, said DeBias.

To learn more about WEDnetPA or to get started with the process, companies may contact Bernadette DeBias (bdebias@mc3.edu) or Katina Faulk (kfaulk@mc3.edu) to discuss eligibility, process, and training plans.

Montgomery County Community College has met the evolving educational needs of Montgomery County for 56 years. The College's curriculum includes more than 100 associate degree and certificate programs, as well as customized workforce training and certifications.

MCCC has campuses in Blue Bell and Pottstown, a Culinary Arts Institute in Lansdale.

The College is recognized regionally and nationally for its sustainability leadership, work with military veterans, community service and service-learning opportunities, and use of classroom technology.

For the sixth consecutive year, MCCC has been named one of the Most Promising Places to Work in Community Colleges in the nation by the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development for its commitment to diversity through inclusive learning and work environments, student and staff recruitment, and retention practices, and meaningful community service and engagement opportunities.

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