Three major Obama administration officials held a conference call today to announce three rural initiatives that will "leverage existing programs and funding," as a White House press release put it. "We know that when rural America is growing, the rest of America is getting stronger," Commerce Secretary John Bryson said on the call. The initiatives are:
• A directive by the president to federal agencies "to take decisive steps to dramatically increase the purchase of biobased products over the next two years," the release said. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the order would increase by half the number of new products that are designated as biobased.
• A national grant competition called "Rural Jobs Accelerator" with about $15 million for projects that promote innovation for regional job creation. The money will come from the Department of Agriculture, the Economic Development Administration, the Delta Regional Authority and the Appalachian Regional Commission. Details will be released in the next few weeks.
• The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor will connect "community colleges and technical colleges that support rural communities with the materials and resources they need to support the training of health information technology professionals" in rural areas, the release said. Mary Wakefield, administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, said the curriculum has already been developed and will be promoted by local and state workforce investment boards.
• A directive by the president to federal agencies "to take decisive steps to dramatically increase the purchase of biobased products over the next two years," the release said. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the order would increase by half the number of new products that are designated as biobased.
• A national grant competition called "Rural Jobs Accelerator" with about $15 million for projects that promote innovation for regional job creation. The money will come from the Department of Agriculture, the Economic Development Administration, the Delta Regional Authority and the Appalachian Regional Commission. Details will be released in the next few weeks.
• The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor will connect "community colleges and technical colleges that support rural communities with the materials and resources they need to support the training of health information technology professionals" in rural areas, the release said. Mary Wakefield, administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, said the curriculum has already been developed and will be promoted by local and state workforce investment boards.
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