DOL grant will aid NWACC programs

NorthWest Arkansas Community College (NWACC) in Bentonville will use a $736,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to bolster training and skill development for students pursuing nursing and emergency medical services (EMS) jobs.

The money comes from a $5 million Labor Department award to the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College (UAPTC) in Little Rock. UAPTC sub-awarded the funding to five two-year colleges in Arkansas as consortia members.

It’s part of the Labor Department’s Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants program. In the latest round, $65 million in awards were granted to 16 colleges in 14 states. It will support 41 colleges — 16 lead institutions and 25 consortia members.

“This grant will allow community colleges to replace wearing and outdated equipment, as well as hire more educators to help with the training of nursing and EMS students,” said Mark Wallenmeyer, NWACC’s dean of health professions. “Students need to train on the best equipment available, and this grant will help.”

He noted that more educators will also lead to a lower student-to-teacher ratio.

“This helps students get connected more with their instructors and gives them a better learning environment to be more successful,” Wallenmeyer said.

An NWACC spokeswoman said the college has 290 students pursuing nursing jobs and 275 students pursuing EMS jobs.