Public Radio for the Piedmont and High Country
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Gov. Cooper announces $4M grant to expand apprenticeship program

Gov. Roy Cooper visits students in a manufacturing pre-apprenticeship program in Wayne County. Courtesy of Wayne Community College.

Gov. Roy Cooper visits students in a manufacturing pre-apprenticeship program in Wayne County. Courtesy of Wayne Community College. 

Governor Roy Cooper announced a new apprenticeship program grant to help provide pathways to high-demand jobs in North Carolina.

A $4 million federal grant has been earmarked for the North Carolina Business Committee of Education (NCBCE). The funding comes from an effort by the U.S. Department of Labor to help expand Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAPS). 

A statewide youth apprenticeship program will be created by NCBCE’s NC Career Launch, aimed at generating an employee pipeline through public schools and workforce training initiatives. 

According to a news release, apprenticeships will combine paid on-the-job training with formal classroom instruction and mentorship. The project will encompass a variety of fields including advanced manufacturing, clean energy, early childhood education, health care and information technology.

Officials also aim to address equity gaps in RAPs and launch options for students with autism and intellectual disabilities. 

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

Support quality journalism, like the story above,
with your gift right now.

Donate