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FMCSA awards grants to train veterans to be drivers

Oct. 9, 2015

The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has announced nearly $2.3 million in grants—double the amount provided in 2014—to 13 US technical and community colleges to help train veterans and their families for jobs as commercial bus and truck drivers.

Funding is provided through FMCSA’s Commercial Motor Vehicle–Operator Safety Training (CMV-OST) grant program.

“We support job opportunities for veterans who have served our country, but not only because it is the right thing to do—it also makes good sense,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “One of the most important, fastest-growing employment sectors is for qualified commercial vehicle drivers, and veterans bring invaluable experience to the industry and can enter the workforce quickly.”

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FMCSA awards CMV-OST grants to a variety of educational institutions that provide truck driving training, including accredited public or private colleges, universities, vocational-technical schools, post-secondary educational institutions, truck driver training schools, associations, and state and local governments, including federally recognized Native American tribal governments.

The 2015 FMCSA grants announced will provide training for hundreds of new students. Awards were made to these organizations:

•California—West Hills Community College District, Coalinga, $199,460

•Georgia—Central Georgia Technical College, Macon, $146,771

•Maryland—Cecil College, North East, $101,825

•New York—Erie 2 Chautauqua Cattaraugus BOCES, Angola, $105,201

•North Carolina—North Carolina Department of Transportation, Raleigh, $200,000

•Ohio—Cuyahoga Community College District, Cleveland, $195,040

•Oklahoma—Central Technical Center, Drumright, $200,000

•Pennsylvania—Lancaster County Career & Technology Center, Willow Street, $194,811

•Pennsylvania—Northampton County Area Community College, Bethlehem, $134,400

•Pennsylvania—The Sage Corporation, Camp Hill, $198,504

•South Carolina—Orangeburg-Callhoun Technical College, Orangeburg, $197,399