Job Training Efforts Receive Backing

The John H. Boner Community Center on the east side of Indianapolis received funding from Lilly Endowment.

The Local Initiatives Support Corp. in Indianapolis has announced $525,000 in grants for programs designed to help low-income Hoosiers gain job skills. The funding will support initiatives at the John Boner Neighborhood Center, Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center and Edna Martin Christian Center.

LISC says services provided by the grants will reach nearly 190 people in a year.

The funding is from the Federal Corporation for National and Community Service’s Social Innovation Fund and is being distributed to Bridges to Career Opportunities centers through the LISC.

The Indianapolis grant money comes from a national, $11.3 million pool. The LISC in Indianapolis says "coaches" at the three community centers will teach math, reading and English as a second language skills along with soft skills including interviewing, teamwork and conflict resolution. The goal is to prepare participants for subsequent technical skills training.