NORTHERN MICHIGAN — The state of Michigan’s Going PRO Talent Fund will invest $1,700,109 in Northern Michigan businesses.

In the 10-county region, 54 employers received their requested funds, which will go towards training new and current employees.

“The Going PRO Talent Fund helps workers get the skills they need to build their lives and advance their careers in Michigan,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a Feb. 20 press release. “Let’s keep our foot on the accelerator as we grow our economy, create unparalleled economic opportunity, and empower more people to make it in Michigan.”

Across the state, $47,841,555 is going towards training employees for skilled and specialized jobs through grants given to more than 750 employers.

Beards Brewery in Petoskey is one of 11 recipients in Emmet County. This is the second time Beards has participated in the grant program, the first time was in 2019 and went towards a course in brewing for the Beards production team.

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“(In 2019, the grant) gave us a competitive edge in the greater brewing world, especially as it's been exploding nationwide,” Beards Co-owner Ben Slocum said. “This is a grant that's put on by the state, so their goal is to create a more educated, capable workforce that have transferable skills and skills that can help bring your business to the next level. In the last few years in particular, it helped us survive COVID and now the next section is going to get us to grow as we've kind of settled into the new status quo.”

This year, Beards received $11,500 that will go towards courses for the leadership team, purchasing team and production team. Most of those going through the training are current employees, but Slocum said they have started bringing in new people who will be going through the training as well.

In total, about 20 employees will be participating in the courses. Some will take all three, while others will take one or two.

“The ones that participated in the past definitely jumped towards (the opportunity). The ones who did not participate in the first round were either curious about it or went with the flow when they were told by the prior team that went through it that it was very well worth it to them,” Slocum said.

The funding for the state will cover the cost of the courses for each employee, but Beards will be investing its own money as well by paying for employee wages for time spent in the courses, transportation and class materials.

“We'll probably be in for three-ish thousand on our side, is my rough estimate,” Slocum said.

The Going PRO Talent Fund was started in 2014 in order to help employers fill a need for skilled workers and offer employees the opportunity to receive training and credentials that are transferable within their industry.

This year, Northern Michigan businesses in multiple industries received grant funding including construction, manufacturing, health care, hospitality, agri-business, outdoor recreation, banking, information technology and energy.

“We’re excited that so many of our local businesses are able to take advantage of these training funds,” said Rob Dickinson, regional director of business services for Northwest Michigan Works!

“These grant awards allow our region to enhance the skill sets and value of so many individuals, which in turn makes our region’s employers more competitive and attractive in today’s economy. We can’t wait for round two.”

In Charlevoix County, Boyne Boat Yard and Van Dam Custom Boats in Boyne City were two of eight recipients. Boyne Boat Yard received $12,475 and Van Dam Custom Boats, which is under the same ownership, received $16,040.

“Our vision on the campus is to have a really highly technical team at Boyne Boat Yard and Van Dam Custom Boats. So really this vision can apply to many disciplines,” said Erika Van Dam, president and co-owner of both companies.

“Some of the training is going towards things like marine system certification, we have a few people getting trained in CAD. Our marketing coordinator is getting a 100-hour graphic design course. So there's a lot of different trainings that the money is going to cover, but primarily with our workforce, it's all marine related.”

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Between both companies, 21 out of 30 employees will receive training, some will be taking multiple courses through third parties like the American Boat and Yacht Council, West System and the American Graphics Institute. At the end of each course, employees will receive certificates showing that they completed the training.

Van Dam said that without the grant, the companies still would have pursued training opportunities for their employees, but would not have been able to do the amount of training made possible by the grant funding.

“People are really looking forward to the opportunity to get some training that they might not have otherwise been able to get. There are quite a few people that will be attending the same training so you get to meet new people, but then also learn amongst your peers. So people are really looking forward to it," Van Dam said.

Over the last few years, the demand for boats and marine services has gone up, leading to an increase in the need for workers training in the marine industry.

“We're really excited about this opportunity because we feel like it really is personally fulfilling in people's careers to be able to get trained and be able to expand their knowledge,” Van Dam said. “So this is a really awesome grant opportunity for our team.”

The second round of applications for the Going PRO Talent Fund will open on May 1 until May 24. Informational meetings will be scheduled in April. Interested businesses should contact Northwest Michigan Works! or go to the Networks Northwest website for more information.

— Contact reporter Tess Ware at tware@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter, @Tess_Petoskey.

Recipients in Emmet, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Otsego and Chippewa counties include:

• Charlevoix County —

  • Shaggy's in Boyne City ($6,000)

  • St. Mary’s Cement in Charlevoix ($78,109)

  • Wolfline Construction in Boyne City ($123,030)

  • Michigan Scientific Corp in Charlevoix ($15,276)

  • Performance Engineers Inc. in Charlevoix ($10,071)

  • Precision Edge Surgical Products in Boyne City ($54,030)

• Emmet County —

  • The Highlands at Harbor Springs ($24,000)

  • Bear River Electric in Petoskey ($42,100)

  • Central Industrial Manufacturing in Harbor Springs ($22,000)

  • Circuit Controls Corporation in Petoskey ($55,675)

  • Drost Landscape in Petoskey ($17,370)

  • Harbor Springs Excavating Inc. ($9,500)

  • Moeller Aerospace in Harbor Springs ($58,500)

  • Muscotts Painting in Petoskey ($7,960)

  • Petoskey Farms Vineyard and Winery in Petoskey ($7,550)

  • Pierce Electric of Norther Michigan, LLC in Harbor Springs ($7,000)

• Otsego County —

  • Medilodge of Gaylord ($40,3000)

  • Cooper Standard Automotive - Gaylord ($10,500)

  • H&S Mold, Inc. in Gaylord ($8,8,600)

  • Sunspring America Inc. dba H&H Tube - Vanderbilt ($49,355)

• Cheboygan County —

  • Link Industries, A Link Group Co. in Indian River ($20,000)

  • TF-, Inc. in Afton ($22,667)

  • Medilodge of Cheboygan ($30,980)

• Chippewa County —

  • Medilodge of Sault Ste. Marie ($26,500)

  • Bunker Manufacturing in Sault Ste. Marie ($9,500)

  • Carmuse Drummond Island ($57,195)

A complete list of recipients across Michigan is available through the State of Michigan’s website.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Northern Michigan businesses receive grant funding for employee training