$1 Million State Grant To Help Modernize Salem High School CTE Labs

SALEM, MA — Salem High School will use a $1 million state Skills Capital Grant to modernize and expand two Career and Technical Education programs.

The grant will allow the school to build a commercial expansion kitchen for its culinary program and purchase state-of-the-art 3D simulation equipment for the culinary arts and medical assisting programs.

Within the past year, culinary arts and medical assisting have experienced rapid expansion in student growth, which has also aligned with the community's need for these careers in and around Salem.

School officials said this grant is in addition to the $260,000 Skills Capital Grant awarded this summer to develop the school's Graphics and Visual Communications Pathway, as well as provide wind and photovoltaic equipment to prepare students for employment in the emerging offshore wind and "blue" economy industries on the North Shore.

The Massachusetts Skills Capital Grant program was created in 2015 to address the need for a skilled workforce in the Commonwealth.

The funding for this round of grants was included in An Act Relative to Immediate COVID-19 Recovery Needs, passed by the legislature and signed by the governor, which included $100 million in state resources to provide capital improvement grants to vocational high schools and public schools operating career and technical education programs.

"Since taking office, our administration has made significant investments through the Skills Capital Grant program to help more young people and adults gain the education, training and skills necessary for successful careers in rapidly growing industry sectors," Gov. Charlie Baker said in announcing the grants in Westfield on Tuesday. "We are proud of the impact these grants have had on both students' educations and their futures in the Massachusetts workforce."

The competitive grants are awarded to educational institutions that demonstrate partnerships with local businesses, as well as align curriculum and credentials with industry demand to minimize hiring opportunities in each region of the state.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)