During a tour of Foster Career and Technical Education (CTE) Center in Farmington, Governor Janet Mills highlighted the importance of Maine CTEs in training skilled workers and spurring economic recovery and long-term growth from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Governor Mills has proposed investing $20 million for program, equipment and facility upgrades for the state’s 27 CTEs as part of the Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan, her proposal to invest more than $1 billion in discretionary Federal relief funds allocated to Maine under the American Rescue Plan Act.
Maine CTEs have not received a significant investment from the State since 1998.
As Attorney General, Governor Mills used funds she obtained through a settlement with Bath Fitter to create plumbing programs at several CTEs in Maine, including Foster CTE Center. In 2019, as Governor, Governor Mills also proposed a $5 million bond to support equipment upgrades at CTEs. The proposal was rejected by some members of the Legislature at the time despite bipartisan support.
Joining Governor Mills on the tour was Melissa Williams, Director of Foster CTE, Allyson Walsh and Mariah Thomas, Foster CTE Center students, and James Brann, a 2007 graduate of Foster CTE Center.
Maine’s public education system has 27 CTE schools that provide Maine students with training for careers, including in welding, nursing and emergency medicine, computer programming and pre-engineering, electrical, heating and cooling systems, building trades, early childhood education, marine trades, automotive technology, horticulture, hospitality and culinary arts, among others.
Governor Mills has presented the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan to the Legislature and will travel the state in the coming weeks to discuss it in more detail with the people of Maine.
