Northern Forest Center secures $1.2M grant for workforce development in Moosehead/Katahdin area schools

A $1.2-million grant from the US Department of Labor will help high school students in the Moosehead and Katahdin regions develop pathways to meaningful careers, with an emphasis on natural resource-based industries including forestry and forest products, outdoor recreation, and tourism.

The Northern Forest Center secured the $1.2-million grant from the US Department of Labor’s Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities program to create and support a workforce development program in the Moosehead and Katahdin regions. 

“We’re excited to be bringing this program to the Moosehead and Katahdin region,” said Amy Scott, program manager for the Center. “We launched a similar program in western Maine last year and have been really pleased with the engagement of students and local businesses in the program.”

The three-year grant for the Moosehead/Katahdin regions will support students in exploring careers through internships, paid work experiences, trainings, experiential field trips, and more. The program will also provide support to businesses within those industries to assess their workforce needs and create opportunities for new career pathways.

“This program will help young people in the region build relationships with area businesses and show them good career paths that are open to them in their own regions,” said Scott.

The Northern Forest Center has convened a team of five local schools and three statewide nonprofit organizations to help students explore and pursue the career opportunities offered in the Moosehead-Katahdin region. The grant will provide: 

Professional development to help schools create Extended Learning Opportunity programs. ELO courses are hands-on, credit and/or credential-bearing courses outside of the traditional classroom with an emphasis on community-based career exploration and workforce development. 

Salary support for ELO coordinators in four high schools and one higher education institution. These coordinators work with students one-on-one to help them gain meaningful work experience, test the fields of work they may be interested in, and build relationships with local business leaders.

Industry networking to collectively develop actionable pathways into careers within each sector.

Beth Peavey, principal of Stearns Junior Senior High School, said that the school “is both proud and excited to be a part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities program. Students will be able to explore careers and experience real-world learning while also earning high school credits. This collaborative partnership will add another avenue for students to advance their education and discover careers here in Maine and beyond.”

Participating schools include Greenville Consolidated School, Piscataquis Community Secondary School in Guilford, Stearns High School in Millinocket, Katahdin Middle/High School in Stacyville, and Katahdin Higher Education Center in East Millinocket. The extended learning opportunities will be tailored to each student and their schools. ELO coordinators will work with students, teachers, businesses, and community partners to design and implement opportunities across the school year.

“In our first year of supporting a credit-bearing ELO program at Piscataquis Community Secondary School, we have 25 students who have started their learning on a subject or focus of their choice,” said Principal John Keane. “Many of these students have already job shadowed for a day in an area that they are interested in. We could not be more thrilled at the initial success of the program, which is mostly attributed to our new ELO teacher and to the network of ELO teachers that is being formed by the WORC 6 grant. Students have quickly bought into the idea of creating and implementing a semester-long learning experience around a topic of career interest.”

The Center’s program partners include Rural Aspirations Project, Maine Development Foundation, and Maine Outdoor Brands. Rural Aspirations will work with schools and support the ELO Coordinators in developing comprehensive ELO programs that integrate with academic, guidance, and advisory structures within the schools. 

Through its work with FOR/Maine, (Forest Opportunity Roadmap/Maine), the Maine Development Foundation will work with forest industry partners in the region to continue to pilot and implement workforce strategies already in development. 

Maine Outdoor Brands, a membership organization, is learning what businesses in Maine’s outdoor recreation industry need to fully develop a thriving workforce. Through its partnership in this program, MOB will engage businesses in developing career pathways that will serve both students and businesses. 

The three-year project will cost $1.9 million in total, with the federal WORC grant providing $1.2 million or 64 percent of the cost. The remaining $715,328, or 36 percent, will come from the school districts, which have varied sources of funding, and other grants secured by the nonprofit partners.

The Northern Forest Center is a regional innovation and investment partner creating rural vibrancy by connecting people, economy, and the forested landscape across the 30-million-acre Northern Forest of northern Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York.