Jackson State Community College is offering online courses to foster workforce development through a federal initiative focused on helping businesses provide additional training for employees.

The program provides reimbursement for training programs to businesses who enroll their employees, but they need to apply as soon as possible. The courses align with the new federal Incumbent Worker Training Program, which is funded by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and created to provide grants to train and retain employees by providing skills upgrades and process improvement training.

The federal government announced the program in late August. Since then, Jackson State has been working in conjunction with area employers to create courses that they can use to train their workers.

“When these announcements are made, we look at what are the demands in the area and what we can do to fulfill those for the employers,” said Kimberly Johnson, director of Workforce Development at Jackson State.

The courses through the Incumbent Worker Training Program need to be completed by the end of November when the invoices are due for submission and reimbursement. Because of that, Jackson State created a list of online courses that apply to a variety of workers in various sectors that that will fit the timeframe.

“A ground-based classroom is what employers typically want, but that would be impossible based on the timeframe and current conditions,” Johnson said. “But we have many online courses that are instructor-led and designed for people who are really trying to get in-depth training.”

Existing businesses can apply for reimbursement through the State of Tennessee, and the amount depends on the number of employees. Jackson State can help guide them through the process. The reimbursements are first come, first served; funding is limited; and some classes are starting at the beginning of October.

“They need to get their application in with the state as soon as possible,” Johnson said. “The quicker they get it in, the better chance they have to get reimbursed for that training. We recommend they submit the application up front with the Local Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) and together we’ll make sure that we can give them the most they can get.”

Contact Johnson at 731-425-8826 or kjohnson75@jscc.edu for information about the program, as well as which courses are available.