University of Tennessee Knoxville receives grant for East Tennessee Works

The University of Tennessee Knoxville has been awarded a $750,000 grant from Jobs for the Future’s Climate-Resilient Employees for a Sustainable Tomorrow (CREST) project. The University of Tennessee is one of six teams across the country receiving this funding to provide training and instruction for individuals seeking green jobs, such as advanced manufacturing and green construction, in the name of a more sustainable future.

According to an article on the University of Tennessee Knoxville’s website, Taj Eldridge, who serves as the managing director for climate innovation at JFFLabs, was quoted as saying of the CREST project and the funding the organization has provided, “These recipients embody the forward-thinking solutions we need when it comes to addressing the dual challenges of climate change and economic inequality. We’re proud to support these organizations as they create new opportunities for their communities and develop solutions that contribute to a more sustainable and equitable future.”

East Tennessee Works aims to place 5,000 individuals living in East Tennessee in green jobs within the next three years. An emphasis will be placed on training people from underrepresented communities, such as Black individuals or those from rural communities, in the green jobs sector, as well as those who are underemployed with their current skill sets. East Tennessee Works will form a network of green job workers, employers, skill training programs, and community groups that provide services that will make it easier for more individuals to pursue these jobs, like childcare and transportation assistance.

“We will be funding many of these organizations that provide these services. We’ll be bringing them together in ways that help recruit potential workers, and we will be reaching out to industry to find out what their hiring possibilities are, their specific needs and how to bring them together with the newly trained, newly skilled folks,” said Jon Shefner, a sociology professor at The University of Tennessee Knoxville.

Shefner will be leading the East Tennessee Works program along with Stephanie Bohon, who is head of the Department of Sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences, and Mitsunori Misawa, an associate professor in the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences. East Tennessee Works will work with companies in the area that are focusing on lowering their carbon footprint or are creating products or services that will help the region become more green, such as electric vehicle component production or solar panels. 

For more information about The University of Tennessee Knoxville, visit the school’s website.