3 Mankato partnerships get grants for job skills training

(St. Paul, MN) – Three Mankato college and business partnerships have been awarded grants to train workers from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

The $1.3 million in grants were awarded under the Minnesota Job Skills Partnership (MJSP) to assist businesses and educational institutions in training workers to keep high-quality jobs in the state.

Three of the nine grants were for partnerships in Mankato:

MSU Mankato and Jones Metal received $172,026 to deliver training to all 95 Jones Metal employees.  The training will increase knowledge and skills, allowing Jones Metal to increase their capacity to meet customer demand and grow the business.

MSU Mankato and Mayo Clinic Health System will use a $384,863 grant for training that will address the shortage of surgical nurses in the state.

South Central College and Nelson Numeric (Bloomington) received a $49,949 grant that will help develop and deliver training for 47 machinists and quality inspectors.

DEED Commissioner Steve Grove says training workers for high-skill, high-paying jobs will be vital to Minnesota’s economic recovery after COVID-19.

The grants were awarded in early March 2020 according to a DEED press release.