Alabama governor awards $2.3 million in grants to help low-income residents
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey awarded $2.3 million in grants for programs across the state that aim to help lower-income residents "take steps to secure gainful employment and improve their quality of life," the state government said in a press release Tuesday.
The grants, called Community Services Block Grants, will be dispersed to 20 agencies across the state, called Community Action Agencies.
The agencies are private non-profits or public organizations created in 1964 to fight poverty in specific areas, according to the Community Action Association of Alabama website.
“Community Action Agencies provide important services help to low-income residents as they work to create a more stable foundation for a successful life,” Ivey said in the release. “I commend these agencies for their goal of reducing and eliminating poverty by helping families in need, and I am pleased that these grant funds will support projects and programs to help reach that goal."
What each agency does depends on where it is and what the needs of its community are, according to the release. Some agencies focus on job search training or interview skills, while others focus on parenting, housing, finance or youth programs.
The grants were made using funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, according to the release.
Some agencies in east Alabama that received grants included the following: $74,031 for the Alabama Council on Human Relations in Lee County; $50,400 for the Macon-Russell Community Action Agency Inc. in Macon and Russell Counties; $47,201 for the Community Action Committee Inc. of Chamber-Tallapoosa-Coosa in Chambers, Tallapoosa, and Coosa counties, and $111,257 for Southeast Alabama Community Action Partnership Inc. in Barbour, Coffee, Genevia, Henry and Houston counties.
For the full list of agencies, visit the Community Action Association of Alabama website.
This story was originally published December 27, 2017 at 7:06 AM with the headline "Alabama governor awards $2.3 million in grants to help low-income residents."