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Ken Lento said that training from Collin College, funded through Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) Skills Development Fund (SDF) grants, came at just the right time.

The small business unit director for Flexlink Systems, Lento said a grant funding 12,000 hours of training allowed his company to shift from one electronic project management system to another seamlessly.

“非常合适，”伦托说。 “这是一次很棒的经历。 We have already started talking about what training we can do next and what training we can do going forward. 我们很高兴经历了这个过程，也很高兴我们取得了成就。”

Representatives from Flexlink Systems and 12 other businesses were on hand as TWC officially announced $1.3 million in SDF grants for the Collin County area. The four grants announced on April 9 will fund 26,000 hours of training for 834 new and current employees in areas ranging from CompTIA Network+ and cloud computing training to circuit printing and forklift safety and certification.

The grant awards included: $478,770 to train 227 new and current employees at Encore Wire Corporation and StatLab Medical Products in McKinney; $362,157 to train 370 new and current employees at Amphenol Fiber Systems International, Cain Watters & Associates, Cates Control Systems, and Natural Polymer International Corporation; $353,072 to train 169 new and current employees at CSG Forte Payments Inc., FlexLink Systems Inc., Netrio, and Portable Solar; $158,958 to train 78 new and current employees at Helm Dental Laboratory and Unicom Engineering.

“We are presenting skills development grants today that total over $1.3 million,” said Dr. Neil Matkin, district president of Collin College. “这不是小数目。 这对我们的商界非常重要。”

Natalie Greenwell, Collin College’s executive director of Grants Management, echoed Dr. Matkin’s sentiments while also noting that businesses help drive the local economy.

“What you do is so important, and what you do adds vibrancy to our communities,” Greenwell said. “We play a small part in making sure your employees have the skills they need to continue to be excellent employees and so that your company remains profitable and remains in Texas.”

Texas Workforce Commissioner Alberto Treviño III also spoke at the event, explaining that SDF grants have helped 4,900 employers since first being established in 1996. The grants help upskill and train employees through partnerships with educational institutions like Collin College and create jobs by helping employers purchase new equipment.

“What everybody is talking about today is teamwork and partnerships,” Treviño III said. “这个领域正在蓬勃发展，不仅仅是在制造业，半导体芯片制造领域。 It is also about healthcare and helping people with disabilities find jobs and helping law enforcement in rural areas.”

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