State provides $16 million to fight poverty

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On Wednesday in Rochester, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced nearly $16 million to support three local projects aimed at fighting poverty: Monroe Community College’s new Finger Lakes Workforce Development Center at Eastman Business Park, the Rochester-Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative’s new Mentors for Success pilot program, and the long-standing Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection program.

MCC’s Workforce Development Center at Eastman Business Park  will match workers with high technology jobs in energy, biomaterials, functional films and photonics companies at the Park. The Center’s curriculum will include training in fields such as mechatronics, precision tooling, hydraulics, computer applications along with training in entrepreneurial skills, effective communication, teamwork and critical thinking. The program is expected to train more than 2,300 workers and add $90 million in economic benefits to the region.

The two-year Mentors for Success pilot program was created by the Rochester-Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative to address its top initial priority of expanding adult mentoring services to people now living below the poverty level. The program will pair professional mentors with participants to identify their socio-economic needs and set goals and action plans. Staff members will also work closely with neighborhood associations, schools and agencies to recommend candidates to take part. The Catholic Family Center will work in partnership with Action for a Better Community and the Community Place of Greater Rochester to work with an initial 300 families in the EMMA, Beechwood and Marketview Heights neighborhoods on the east side of Rochester.

The Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection currently pairs about 700 Rochester-area high school students with mentoring services and part-time jobs each year. The new funds will be used to expand the program by a total of 500 students per year over the next two years on the east side of Rochester. The Scholarship Connection offers an array of services such as academic support, college preparation, and life and career skills development.