New Scholarship Helps Michigan Adults Obtain Associate Degree

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer joined with Republican and Democratic legislators to announce the launch of the $30 million Michigan Reconnect program, the largest effort in state history to ensure that more than 4.1 million Michiganders who are 25 or older and do not have a college degree will have an opportunity to earn a tuition-free associate degree or skills certificate.   

“All Michiganders deserve a pathway to a good-paying job, whether they choose to pursue a college degree, technical certificate, or an apprenticeship,” Gov. Whitmer said during a virtual news conference. “Michigan Reconnect will connect thousands of Michiganders to good-paying jobs and connect businesses with the talent they need to thrive in their communities. I’m proud of the hard work that has gone into creating this historic new opportunity and look forward to continuing bipartisan work with lawmakers toward our goal of ensuring 60% of Michiganders will have a postsecondary degree by 2030.”

Michigan Reconnect will pay the cost of tuition for eligible adults who want to pursue an associate degree or skills certificate at their in-district community college. The program also offers skills scholarships to help cover the cost of tuition through more than 70 private training schools with 120 programs that offer certificates in high-demand careers in industries such as manufacturing, construction, information technology, healthcare or business management.

Michiganders can submit applications at Michigan.gov/Reconnect. The application takes less than five minutes to complete and can be done on a mobile device.

Reconnect scholarships are accepted by all Michigan community colleges and are even available to eligible adults who are already enrolled in their local community college. The program pays the remaining balance of tuition and mandatory fees after other state and federal financial aid have been applied. For those who choose to attend an out-of-district community college, Reconnect will pay the in-district portion of tuition.

Submitted by the Office of Governor Gretchen Whitmer

To learn more about community college programs offered by St. Clair County Community College, visit www.sc4.edu

COVID Vaccine Pre-Registration System Expected Friday

The St. Clair County Health Department is expecting the new pre-registration system for COVID-19 vaccines to go live on Friday. With the new system, individuals will be able to sing up for email, text, and/or phone notifications when future vaccine appointments become available.

The pre-registration system is not a sign up system, and it does not reserve a future vaccine appointment. When the pre-registered individual is notified of an available appointment, they will still have to follow the instructions included in the notification to reserve an appointment.

The Health Department is still vaccinating eligible individuals in the 65 years and older group and the 1A/1B priority groups. Group 1A consists of healthcare workers and long term care residents, and 1B is mainly frontline workers and those who work in institutions or schools. Persons in those groups will be notified of vaccine opportunities by their employers.

Dr. Annette Mercatante, Medical Health Officer, stated, “The vaccine allocation we receive is turned around quickly and used within 7 days. During the week of January 21-27, we administered over 2,000 vaccinations. We expect numbers to increase as allocations improve. We look forward to offering weekly 65+ clinics and continue clinics for essential workers utilizing the upcoming pre-registration system. This new process will be a positive step hopefully alleviating stress in our (senior) population.”

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Influenza Rate Down Drastically This Year

What happened to the flu? This is usually the time of year when families get together for birthday parties and give gifts along with the flu virus, or have a team dinner at a restaurant and pass the flu germs around with the bread basket. But, with restrictions and precautions in place to prevent COVID, flu transmission is practically non-existent.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services still prints a weekly flu report, but there’s not much to report right now. No positive flu tests were reported, nor were there any outbreaks in nursing homes, as of the last report.

For the entire flu season so far, there have been six influenza hospitalizations statewide.  Nationally, the entire nation is in the lowest risk zone with the exception of Oklahoma which has a low/moderate risk designation. The first case of influenza A, commonly called swine flu, has been reported in Wisconsin by an individual living on a swine farm. Overall, influenza risk is very minimal at this point in the season, nationwide.

MDHHS pushed hard to get 4 million people to get the flu shot. They reached 75% of their goal with about 3.3 million flu shots given.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Women’s Initiative Hits $1 Million Mark

The Community Foundation of St. Clair County’s Women’s Initiative Endowment Fund has recently hit a major milestone. They now have a fund balance of over $1 million. 

The fund has over 300 contributing members who have grown the fund ten-fold over the last 19 years. The fund focuses on removing educational barriers for students. The Women’s Initiative partners with the St. Clair County RESA Great Start Collaborative to make sure every child can get a quality preschool education, no matter their family’s income level. The impact of a quality year of preschool can set the stage for successful school years and a life of learning. 

The Women’s Initiative hosts a yearly event, “100 Women Who Care”, which went virtual last fall. It will be held this fall, either virtual or in-person, depending on the ability to gather in large groups. The last live event had around 300 women in attendance. Small group socials are also on the agenda, once they are able to be held. 

The mission of the Initiative remains focused on large impact tuition assistance grants, according to Jackie Hanton, Vice President of the Community Foundation. Grant applications can be found on the Community Foundation website. 

https://www.stclairfoundation.org/grants/

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Virtual Conference on Early Childhood

St. Clair County RESA is holding a virtual conference to support and educate parents and caregivers of preschoolers. The St. Clair County Early Childhood Conference will be held via Zoom on Saturday, March 6th from 8:30 AM until 12 PM.

The virtual conference is a digital version of “Parent University” and includes educational sessions focused on parents, infants & toddlers, and preschool aged children. Topics range from developing early reading skills to healthy eating and using technology appropriately.

There are a limited number of scholarships available to parents which are given on a first-come-first-served basis, and forms are available on their event website. Registration is $10 per person, and available by visiting St. Clair County RESA’s website and clicking on “Professional Development” <HERE>.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Federal Money, National Guard Help State Work Toward Goal of 50,000 Shots Per Day

Michigan is in the top 20% of states in administering the COVID-19 vaccine. The state has administered around a million vaccines, using roughly 71% of the vaccines on hand in the state, according to the Center for Disease Control’s February 1st report.

Part of the success of the distribution plan, relative to the rest of the states, could be because of the utilization of Michigan’s National Guard.

Major General Paul Rogers, Adjutant General and Director of Michigan’s Department of Military and Veterans Affairs said, “Our dedicated members of the Michigan National Guard are working hard to administer vaccines across the state. The men and women of the Michigan National Guard have been proud to assist the state in Michigan’s COVID-19 response, whether it’s by testing, administering vaccines, or ensuring families across the state have the food they need to get through the pandemic. We will continue working in partnership with the governor, Dr. Khaldun, and their teams to end the pandemic once and for all.” 

Michigan is using federal funding to increase distribution and try to get to the goal of 50,000 shots per day. The money will go to local health departments to pay for additional staffing and equipment. More money is expected to go toward testing, tracing, and lab capacity in Michigan as well.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland