Alaska Awarded $2.9M for Healthcare Workforce Training

By Mike Andrews
Alaska Native News

ANCHORAGE: The Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOLWD) has won a competitive federal grant to expand Registered Apprenticeship health care training in Alaska. DOLWD applied for the grant in partnership with the Southcentral Foundation and the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority. The grant will accelerate development of training programs for high demand health care occupations. The grant award was announced following a White House summit and Congressional briefing that featured Alaska as one of the leading states that uses Registered Apprenticeship.

“This grant will significantly expand Alaska’s training infrastructure in health care, which has the state’s fastest job growth,” said Commissioner Heidi Drygas. “This funding could not come at a better time, as we ramp up health care training in support of Governor Walker’s Healthy Alaska Plan.”

DOLWD has been working with employers such as Southcentral Foundation, Alaska Regional Hospital, Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, Providence Health and Services, the Department of Health and Social Services, and respective labor unions to design a Registered Apprenticeship Training Cooperative that will improve health training in Alaska. The Cooperative will expand availability of training for high demand occupations such as Operating Room Technician and Personal Care Assistant. The Cooperative is designed to meet occupational demand in the health care industry while building career ladders that help Alaska health care workers advance in their careers and earn livable wages.

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