The world's largest financial asset manager has given $1 million to Goodwill in Augusta to help train more Helms College students in skilled careers.
Goodwill of Middle Georgia and the CSRA recently announced the grant, coming from BlackRock Future Builders, a national philanthropic initiative funded by the BlackRock Foundation to train and support 50,000 workers nationwide.
BlackRock manages more than $14 trillion in investments globally.
Founded in 2007 as the Helms Career Institute and renamed Helms College in 2012, the school is a private, nonprofit, accredited career college with Augusta and Macon campuses operated by the regional Goodwill charity.
More than 86
cents of every dollar of Goodwill revenue underwrites job training and placement services within the agency’s 35-county service delivery area, according to the agency.
In Augusta, the grant is expected to help expand two diploma programs at Helms: for electrician technicians and for heating/ventilation/air-conditioning/refrigeration technicians.
"Funding will equip training labs for hands-on learning, support additional instructors and help students overcome barriers, including transportation, with the goal of increasing annual skilled-trades enrollment capacity from 240 to 640 students," Goodwill said in a statement. "Together, these efforts will help local residents prepare for in-demand careers while meeting local employers’ need for trained HVAC/R and electrical technicians."
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: $1 million BlackRock grant boosts skilled trades training in Augusta
