Page 33 - BusinessWest August 18, 2025

education schools, MassHire Regional Workforce Boards
and career centers, businesses, and labor for paving the
way for more job seekers to gain meaningful skills and
employment in Massachusetts.”
Three of the awards involve schools in Western Mass.:
• Franklin County Technical School in Turners Falls will
receive $2,219,375 to provide training to 216 participants
for auto tech, building maintenance, carpentry, electrical,
horticulture, plumbing, and welding positions.
The school will partner with Ames Electrical Consult-
ing, National Grid, Crocker Electrical Services, Indie
Automotive, Harrison Diesel Solutions, Cherry Rum Auto-
motive, Built for the East Offroad, Grass Roots Landscap-
ing LLC, Pioneer Gardens Inc., Snow & Sons Landscap-
ing, Sugarloaf Gardens, Champion Tree and Lawn Care,
Franklin County Regional Housing and Redevelopment
Authority, Doyle Properties, Ironworkers Local 7, Win-
chester Precision Technologies, SMART Local #63 Joint
Apprenticeship and Training Center, Sheet Metal Workers
Local 63, Sandri Energy, Mike Woodard Plumbing, Car-
penters Local 336 North Atlantic States Regional Council
of Carpenters, Mowry & Schmidt Inc., Fine Line Builders,
Neal Leno Carpentry, Ron Grogan Homebuilder, and Salm-
on Falls Builders.
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“By leveraging available
resources at career and technical
education schools across
Massachusetts, we are opening
more opportunities to help train
and prepare untapped talent for
current workforce demands.”
LAUREN JONES
• Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School
in Palmer will receive $730,000 to provide training to 72
participants for CNC Machine operator, electrician, and
plumbing positions. It will partner with Viant, Sanderson
MacLeod, Knight Machine, B&R Machine, IMI Adaptas,
Noonan Energy, NBE, KACO, PVE, EWS, and Aquarius.
• Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School in
Northampton will receive $479,998 to provide training to
60 participants for culinary arts positions. It will partner
with Snapchef, Tosca, Smith College Dining Services,
Atkins Farms, River Valley Co-Op, Pete’s Sweets, Ana Ban-
deira Chocolates, and Hungry Ghost Bread.
“With this investment in career technical education, we
are creating more pathways for adult learners to gain the
skills and experience needed to enter high-demand indus-
tries like the trades, construction, and manufacturing,”
Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler said. “I’m grateful to
our schools and employer partners whose collaboration is
helping to expand access to career-connected learning and
grow our state’s workforce.”
Added Tom Hooper, vice president of Sector Strate-
gies at Commonwealth Corp., “vocational schools across
Massachusetts continue to be the backbone of the Career
Technical Initiative, delivering hands-on, high-quality train-
ing in critical industries like construction, manufacturing,
and the skilled trades. Their leadership and commitment
are essential to building the talent pipelines our workforce
needs to thrive.” BW
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