To develop a strategic plan to support Maine's small-scale agricultural workforce and business growth.
Funding will be used to:
To replace a 70-year-old fire station, which is structurally unsound
To establish a comprehensive community college training program at Washington County Community College and Southern Maine Community College for Maine's seafood workforce. The curriculum will include seafood processing, logistics, transportation, marketing, and sales.
To purchase equipment and develop curriculum for Northern Maine Community College's Mechanized Logging Operations program. This successful program has placed graduates into well-paying logging careers by providing training with the latest technology to meet the industry's needs. Students learn hands-on while operating highly technical, industry-standard equipment with field instructors.
To promote new jobs and business start-ups in nine Maine communities, including Augusta, Bath, Belfast, Brunswick, Ellsworth, Gardiner, Houlton, Rockland, and Westbrook. These communities will undergo an audit process to identify gaps and opportunities to better build their entrepreneur ecosystem, and a comprehensive report for each community will be generated with prioritized action items for implementation.
To purchase a pediatric and obstetric mobile simulator and simulator equipment to support health care workforce training. This equipment will help increase clinical training capacity in these specialties, and train critically-needed nurses in rural communities. The $1 million request will purchase and outfit a 40-foot mobile simulation unit with high-fidelity pediatric and infant simulators, a high-fidelity birthing manikin and virtual reality equipment and headsets to maximize and standardize the clinical learning experience. The van will provide a full-scale simulation center with two rooms that mimic a hospital room, a control room to operate the technology, and a debriefing space. The van will travel through the UMaine system, but is a critical need for nursing students at UMaine-Presque Isle and UMaine-Fort Kent.
To support the launch of a network of virtual dental homes serving eight rural counties in Maine. This pilot project will engage community partners, including non-profit dental centers, federally qualified health centers, and Head Start programs, to expand the delivery of dental care to children in Maine.