Impact Institute Receives Grant
Community Foundation of Noble County Awards $20,000 Grant to Impact Institute for Welding Booths
The Community Foundation of Noble County is pleased to announce the award of a $20,000 grant to the Impact Institute to support the purchase of new welding booths for its expanding career training programs. This funding will help Impact Institute enhance its educational infrastructure, enabling more students to pursue careers in the high-demand manufacturing sector.
The Impact Institute, established in 1969, offers 13 career training programs to high school juniors and seniors from 13 partner high schools. These programs are designed to either prepare students for immediate employment or to further their education and training. In addition to serving high school students, Impact provides adult basic education services, helping individuals achieve high school equivalency and connecting them with employment and training opportunities.
The grant from the Community Foundation of Noble County will be used as part of a larger project to transform two vacant retail spaces in the Fairview Plaza in Kendallville into modern classrooms and shops for the welding and machining programs. The new welding booths will be designed to maximize both workspace and learning opportunities, addressing the Institute’s critical need for expanded capacity.
With this expansion, the Institute will be able to increase enrollment in both the welding and machining programs, provide a safer and more conducive learning environment, and introduce new equipment and technologies that meet industry standards.
The overarching goals of this project are to serve more youth and adult learners by expanding program capacity, enhancing the quality of the learning environment to achieve better student outcomes, and aligning educational offerings with industry needs by incorporating additional equipment and technologies. Additionally, the project aims to attract more students to the welding and machining programs, provide a safer learning and working environment, and strengthen partnerships with organizations like Freedom Academy and Ivy Tech.
The expansion is expected to have a significant impact on the local economy by increasing the number of students completing programs with industry-recognized certifications, thus better meeting the demand for skilled workers in the manufacturing sector. Noble County, recognized as one of the top five counties in the nation for manufacturing job concentration, will benefit greatly from this investment in its future workforce.
For more information about the grant or the work of the Community Foundation of Noble County, please contact Jazmin Herrera at 260-894-3335 or Jazmin@CFnoble.org
About the Community Foundation of Noble County:
The Community Foundation of Noble County enhances life in the region by connecting donors with community needs and making impactful grants. Since 1991, it has catalyzed positive change, supporting education, senior issues, childcare, economic development, and more. As a 501(c)(3) public charity, its mission is to improve life in Noble County by addressing local issues and leveraging donor support to drive meaningful change.
Pictured left to right: Kenny Kill (CFNC Board President), Welding Instructors, Rex Rawles and Clay Moore, & Jazmin Herrera (CFNC Program Director)
