Ahead of the release of his short session budget, Governor Roy Cooper shared recommendations to create the N.C. Job Ready Fund to train and grow North Carolina’s workforce to fill the jobs of today and tomorrow. In February, Gov. Cooper laid out his key principles for improving North Carolina’s workforce: providing education and skills training, partnering with employers to prepare workers for evolving industries, and tapping into local innovation.
“Business leaders and CEOs across the state and the globe say that their number one need for creating new jobs is a well-trained workforce,” said Gov. Cooper. “The programs in the N.C. Job Ready Fund will help North Carolinians get the training and education they need to compete for jobs available today as well as those that we will recruit to North Carolina. These good-paying, skilled jobs will put more money in the pockets of North Carolina families.”
The fund would be divided among three primary areas of focus: NC GROW (financial assistance for jobs in high demand fields); Finish Line Grants (helping students complete higher education degrees); Employer Education Grants (support for employer innovation and workforce training).
