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S P R I N G 2 0 2 4 / W O R K F O R M E 15 C o n s t r u c t i o n / T r a d e s of people working in Maine's defense industry. T h e c o l l e g e w i l l b u i l d a 10,000-square-foot addition to its existing Sanford Instructional Site facility at 60 Community Drive, in Sanford, to create the YCCC Center for Excellence in Manufacturing and Trades. The facility is within 30 miles of both Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, and Pratt & Whitney in North Berwick, both founding members of the alliance. The expansion will be funded by $3.5 million in Navy funding, $1.5 million in YCCC funds, and $1.5 million in federal funding through 2023's federal Trans- portation, Housing and Urban Development bill. "It's a great investment to build a new state-of-the-art welding facility just miles from two of the state's three largest defense contractors, adding hundreds of new skilled work- ers a year to the local work- force," YCCC President Michael Fischer said in a news release. Officials weigh in Maine's top elected officials praised the alliance for its co- ordinated, all-hands-on-deck approach to alleviating the workforce and skills shortages in the state's defense industry. Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, said Maine has a "long, storied, and proud history" of support- ing national defense, and that the alliance would help keep that history alive. "By marshalling the resourc- es of state government, higher education institutions, and leading defense companies, this public and private partnership will build a pipeline of skilled workers to fill good-paying jobs in Maine's defense sector and fulfill our mission of support- ing the defense of our nation," Mills said in a statement. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R- Maine, said the new partnership between Maine educational institutions and the state's defense employers, who rely on a highly skilled workforce, is "exciting and vital to both the state's economy and our national defense." "Providing Mainers with paths to meaningful, well- paying jobs through invest- ments in skills training will keep more young people in the state and provide valuable re- sources throughout their ca- reers," Collins said. U.S. Sen. Angus King, I- Maine, praised the alliance for its innovative approach. Ac- cording to the group, no similar entity exists in any other state, thus creating an opportunity for the alliance to become a model for others. "This alliance is an invest- ment in bridging the gap be- tween public and private sec- tors that can impact businesses and colleges from Aroostook to York counties and will boost our state's economy and de- fense workforce, as well as our national security," King said. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, said that with Maine's workforce aging faster than nearly any other state, it's critical for it to keep meeting residents' economic needs and offering opportunities to earn a good living. " O u r s t a t e ' s r o b u s t a n d cutting-edge defense indus- try has immense potential to help address challenges like Maine's historically low un- employment rate, our aging workforce, and the decline in the number of students gradu- ating high school," Pingree said in a statement. "This new partnership taps into our po- tential–creating more oppor- tunities for Mainers to learn skilled trades in service of our state and our nation." n