Office of Economic Vitality Announces Elevate Florida’s Capital for Business First Grant Recipient

Junior Achievement Awarded Workforce Development Funding • 

In an effort to close gaps between existing workforce development programs and the needs of local businesses, the Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality (OEV) established, under the Elevate Florida’s Capital for Business Grant Fund, Elevate Your Workforce earlier this year. This grant provides funding to local organizations that demonstrate new, innovative strategies, or replicate effective, evidence- based strategies that align available assets, organizations, and resources towards shared economic growth objectives that strengthen our local workforce.

The Office of Economic Vitality is pleased to announce that Junior Achievement Big Bend is the program’s first recipient. Junior Achievement Big Bend will be utilizing the grant funds $21,770 for their entrepreneurial program in local high schools.

“Catalyzing workforce development opportunities directly aligns with OEV’s mission. Workforce training has the ability to transform the lives of people and our local economy,” OEV Director Cristina Paredes said. “We are confident that the program offered by Junior Achievement will do both.”

The grant program directly supports a cornerstone objective of the Office of Economic Vitality: to invest in and provide a strong talent development and retention network for employees and employers in the Tallahassee-Leon County community. The Elevate Your Workforce Grant allows OEV to support the innovative organizations that work every day to make our region better.

A second round of Elevate Your Workforce grants will be awarded on December 2, 2019. Applications are available at OEVforBusiness.org and are due on Friday, November 1, 2019. To learn more about the Elevate Our Workforce Grant, please contact OEV Director Cristina Paredes by email at cparedes@oevforbusiness.org or call at 850-219-1060.