Two Pella-based organizations were recipients of Employer Innovation Fund awards from the State of Iowa.

Central College and The Well Resource Center’s Fairfield location each received grants to further enhance the skills of the local workforce.

Central College received $40,000 for a program in partnership with Pella Regional Health Center and Wesley Life, which will create a program for high school students to participate in virtual reality training that leads to CNA certification. Additional training will prepare students for entrance into six different medical careers, all of which were identified as high demand by local employers

The Well Works program is expanding to Fairfield and received $50,000. The project started in Pella opens opportunities for the unemployed with multiple barriers to overcoming those barriers and become independent by learning job skills in high demand occupations such as advanced manufacturing.

Future Ready Iowa, established in 2016 on a unanimous basis in the Iowa Legislature, created a goal that 70 percent of Iowa’s workforce have education or training beyond high school by 2025.