The US Department of Labor recently announced $140 million in grant awards through the end of Program Year 2016 ($337 million annually for an additional 3 years) in job training grants to 19 organizations nationwide, including a $10.2 million annual award to Vermont Associates for Training and Development, Inc., a non-profit headquartered in St. Albans, VT. The grant, funded through the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), provides critical job training and related services to low-income workers age 55+.

Vermont Associates continues to administer the SCSEP in Vermont, with locations in Bennington, Brattleboro, Burlington, Montpelier, Rutland, St. Johnsbury, and St. Albans. In addition, as part of the new grant, Vermont Associates will administer the SCSEP in Maine, and in large parts of New York and Pennsylvania, where they will be doing business as Associates for Training & Development.

Now in its 34^th year of operation, Vermont Associates’ experience in operating the SCSEP makes them a nationally recognized leader in the field of mature worker training and employment. The SCSEP, authorized by Title V of the Older Americans Act, is the only federally sponsored employment and training program targeted specifically to unemployed, low-income individuals age 55 and older. Individuals served by the grants receive paid training through part-time, service-oriented positions in their communities. The program has dual goals of promoting community service and helping participants achieve economic self-sufficiency by guiding them into unsubsidized employment. The program nationally funds more than 34,000 training positions annually, and program participants provide almost 35 million hours of community service annually to public agencies and nonprofit organizations.

Vermont Associates’ Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer Patricia Elmer states, “We are very pleased to continue to offer training and employment services to Vermonters as we have since 1983. SCSEP is a program which fosters the development of an age diverse, multi-generational workplace. We look forward to continuing our partnership with public and non-profit organizations, and employers who value the mature workforce.”