Triad makerspace The Forge in Greensboro has been awarded $25,000 in seed funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The award is part of the SBA Makerspace Training, Collaboration and Hiring competition, which dispersed $1 million in seed, proof of concept and scale funding this week.
The Forge, led by director Joe Rotondi, is a trades-based collaborative workspace where craftspeople, students and hobbyists can work alone, alongside one another or in programs intended toward workforce development.
"This award shows that a federal government agency recognizes the potential impact of makerspaces as institutions serving their communities, specifically in a way that empowers our labor pool to keep up the the skills demand in manufacturing, engineering, and fabrication," Rotondi said.
The skills bootcamp, for example, an intensive trades based career discovery program, can more rapidly be expanded into a paid pre-apprenticeship program, helping to funnel skilled workers through the Forge's talent pipeline.
"We have worked and will continue to work with Communities in Schools, the Women's Resource Center, the Interactive Resource Center, Jobs On The Outside, and N.C. Works to build a bridge for the underemployed to the exciting and rewarding jobs available in the Triad using skilled trades, Rotondi said.
The Forge is one of three workforce development ecosystems to win the $25,000. The others are in Puerto Rico and Kansas City, Missouri.
Back in July the Forge announced it would expand to fully occupy the space at 219 W. Lewis St., of which it has 8,000 square feet. Expanding into the additional 4,000-square-foot space plus a $50,000 community fundraise will help enhance the trades-based cowering space enhance its educational programs, Rotondi said.
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