Bank of America Supports Work of CareerEdge with $75,000 Grant

The grant will help further CareerEdge’s efforts to expand its programs and its reach, increasing the number of low- and mid-wage individuals in Manatee and Sarasota counties who receive skills assessment and training through their employers in order to improve their employment opportunities.

“Pervasive unemployment is a critical issue and low-income populations are often the last to be hired into livable wage jobs,” said Douglas Sherman, market president for West Central Florida, Bank of America. “We are pleased to collaborate with CareerEdge to help fund local job training programs, offering low-income families a way to overcome barriers and achieve economic self-sufficiency.”
Since May 2010, CareerEdge has partnered with nine employers to train more than 1,200 workers over the next two years. The organization has estimated that 75 percent of these workers will receive an average raise of $2.33 per hour.
“We were thrilled to find out CareerEdge was the recipient of Bank of America’s $75,000 grant,” said Mireya Eavey, executive director of CareerEdge. “Through Bank of America’s program, we’ll be able to edge closer to our goals of providing employers with skilled employees, helping low- and mid-income workers achieve family-sustaining wages, and helping advance the region’s economic viability.”
About CareerEdge CareerEdge is an innovative partnership of business, civic, and philanthropic organizations that leverage public and private dollars to provide opportunities for better jobs and wages in Manatee and Sarasota counties. The first regional collaborative of workforce investors in the southeastern United States to be designated as a site of the National Fund for Workforce Solutions, CareerEdge was created with funding from John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, City of Bradenton Central Community Redevelopment Agency, Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, Bank of America, Bradenton 14th Street Community Redevelopment Agency, Bradenton Downtown Development Authority, and Manatee Community Action Agency. It is also supported by contributions from Microsoft, City of Sarasota Newtown CRA, Sarasota County Government Jane’s Trust, and Suncoast Workforce. For more information about CareerEdge and its partners, please visit www.careeredgefunders.org or call 941-744-2661.
About Bank of America:Bank of America is one of the world’s largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 59 million consumer and small business relationships with 6,000 retail banking offices, more than 18,000 ATMs and award-winning online banking with nearly 30 million active users. Bank of America is among the world’s leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to more than 4 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients in more than 150 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
About Bank of America Corporate Philanthropy:Building on a long-standing tradition of investing in the communities it serves, last year Bank of America embarked on a new, 10-year goal to donate $2 billion to nonprofit organizations engaged in improving the health and vitality of their neighborhoods. Funded by Bank of America, the Bank of America Charitable Foundation gave more than $200 million in 2009, making the bank one of the largest corporate cash donors in the United States.  Bank of America approaches investing through a national strategy under which it works with local leaders to identify and meet the most pressing needs of individual communities.  Reaffirming a commitment to develop and sustain a culture of service, the bank announced the “Million Hour Challenge,” a pledge by the company’s associates around the world to donate 1 million volunteer hours by the end of 2010. In 2009, bank associate volunteers contributed more than 800,000 hours to enhance the quality of life in their communities nationwide. For more information about Bank of America Corporate Philanthropy, please visit www.bankofamerica.com/foundation.