Workforce News

The Manufacturing Institute, the NAM’s nonprofit workforce development and education partner, has been named an inaugural recipient of Stanley Black & Decker grant funding for its “leadership and expansion” of the Toyota-founded Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) program.

The details: The MI, which currently operates FAME, a workforce development and training program, is one of 86 organizations chosen to receive funds from Stanley Black & Decker’s first-ever Empower Makers Global Impact Challenge grant.

• This year’s grants will help skill and reskill approximately 180,000 people in manufacturing through 2022.
• The program will give up to $25 million over the next five years to nonprofits “supporting trade workforce development initiatives in the construction and manufacturing sectors,” according to the MI.

Empowering makers: “Stanley Black & Decker is immensely proud to support the MI through their FAME programming as they work to skill and reskill the next generation of trade professionals,” said Stanley Black & Decker Vice President of Social Impact Diane Cantello.

• “Currently in the U.S., there are an estimated 650,000 open construction jobs and 10 million unfilled manufacturing jobs globally. Our purpose is to support ‘Those Who Make the World,’ and being able to fund educational programs and nonprofits that are revitalizing trade careers directly connects to our core mission. Thanks to this year’s Makers Grant Recipients, together we will be one step closer to closing the trade skills gap.”

The MI says: “Stanley Black & Decker’s commitment to FAME demonstrates how business can lead as they answer the call to grow the workforce of today and tomorrow,” said MI President Carolyn Lee.

• “We are grateful for their partnership in this effort to empower students with pathways to exciting, rewarding careers in modern manufacturing.”

About FAME: Founded in 2010 by Toyota, FAME aims to help students become highly skilled, sought-after makers capable of meeting the unique needs and challenges of the modern manufacturing sector.

Learn more about Stanley Black & Decker’s Empower Makers Global Impact Challenge at EmpowerMakers.com.