CLARKSDALE, Miss. – The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) recently awarded approximately $7 million toward 25 workforce development projects supporting economic development and prosperity throughout the lower Mississippi River Delta and Alabama Black Belt regions.
Funded through the Delta Workforce Grant Program (DWP), the $7 million investment will support projects and initiatives that address the employment and training needs of the local and regional workforce within DRA’s eight-state service area. This year, DRA awarded grants – ranging from $50,000 to $300,000 – to 25 projects benefitting communities in Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.
“The Delta Workforce Grant Program is an essential tool that prioritizes projects supporting workforce employment and training needs in the DRA region,” said Dr. Corey Wiggins, Federal Co-Chairman. “As a result of this investment, nearly 2,500 jobs will be created and retained, about 3,000 individuals trained, and over 300 communities served thanks to these initiatives and programming that will strengthen local workforce ecosystems and economic vitality throughout the region.”
The DWP is an initiative designed to build long-term community capacity and to increase economic competitiveness by investing in projects that support workforce training and education programs. The program provides opportunities to recruit, train and retain local workforce; align workforce and economic development strategies; sustain talent pipelines; establish or enhance locally and regionally significant sector-based partnerships; and support enhanced workforce productivity through investments in innovative programming and services.
Missouri and Illinois recipients of the 2025 DWP include:
ILLINOIS
Southern Illinois Hospital Services was awarded nearly $292,000 for equipment modernization to support health care workforce training to meet the demands of modern medical practice in 16 counties within the Illinois Delta region.
MISSOURI
East Missouri Action Agency was awarded $300,000 to implement an employment training program for the rural counties of St. Francois and Washington, Mo., that will provide pre-employment soft skills and industry-specific occupational skills training in the construction sector, exposing participants to employment in the construction industry and successfully preparing them to enter, or re-enter, the workforce.
Delta Area Economic Opportunity Corporation (DAEOC) was awarded nearly $298,000 for a medical coding and billing pre-apprenticeship project that will expand DAEOC’s Adult Education and Job Training Center, preparing workers for careers in the health care industry in Southeast Missouri.
To learn more about the Delta Workforce Grant Program, visit www.dra.gov.
About the Delta Regional Authority
The DRA was established in 2000 as a formal framework for joint federal-state collaboration to promote and encourage the economic development of the lower Mississippi River and Alabama Black Belt regions. To fulfill this purpose, DRA invests in projects supporting transportation infrastructure, basic public infrastructure, workforce training and business development. DRA’s region encompasses 255 counties and parishes in parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.