Minnesota State University, Mankato, business partners receive MN Job Skills Partnership grants

Minnesota State University, Mankato, business partners receive Minnesota Job Skills Partnership grants total more than $700,000

By Jake Rinehart | September 18, 2019 at 5:11 PM CDT - Updated September 18 at 5:22 PM

MANKATO, Minn. (KEYC) — Minnesota State University, Mankato and three area businesses have been awarded grant money for Minnesota Job Skills Partnership (MJSP) by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).

The grants total to $736,674.

The grants received were among the original 26 workforce development grants that DEED awarded to the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system on June 17.

“Funding from the Minnesota Job Skills Partnership is a key resource for Mankato-area businesses seeking to grow the skills of their employees and address their workforce development needs,” said Bobby Fleischman, the associate vice president of strategic partnerships at Minnesota State University, Mankato. “We are deeply indebted to this signature state program for its support of Minnesota State University, Mankato.”

“The MJSP program and our business partners are helping us serve the workforce of the future through creative collaborations and the development of new curriculum to train employees,” said Tammy Bohlke, program coordinator for strategic partnerships at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

A breakdown of each grant can be found in the table below.

Partnering with Minnesota State University, Mankato includes:	Grant Total	Intended Use:
Mankato Clinic	$397,100	MSU, Mankato will partner with the Mankato Clinic to develop and deliver training for 84 new hires and 864 total employees. All employees will participate in a safety/de-escalation and violence prevention course. New simulation skills training that provides employees up to 30 continuing education units will be delivered at Minnesota State Mankato’s simulation center, using a new portable mannequin.
Dotson Iron Castings	$290,203	Minnesota State Mankato will work with Dotson to write new curriculum for company training. A total of 185 employees (75 new) will receive training in areas applicable to their position. Training will provide employees with increased knowledge and skills along with the opportunity to advance in their job responsibilities and increase their rate of pay
TSI Plastics, Inc.	$49,371	TSI will collaborate with Minnesota State Mankato to develop training that will be delivered on-site at TSI for all 50 of its employees. Through training, management and leaders will be better equipped to confront issues in a productive way, work through problems methodically and help employees maximize productivity.