WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts today announced OneKC will receive a $15 million Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) grant

"The importance of advancing entrepreneurial and innovative partnerships is critical to the industrial development of a metropolitan area," Senator Roberts said. "OneKC will use these funds to catalyze these partnerships by transforming existing industries and attracting new industries to the Kansas City area. The framework OneKC created has brought Kansas City to the starting line in becoming an influential and successful industrial base."

The grant was awarded by the United States Department of Labor. Senator Roberts wrote a letter in support of OneKC and personally conveyed his support to the Department.

OneKC is an ongoing, business development strategy of the Kansas City Area Development Council (KCADC) to educate key state, county, community and corporate leadership in the Kansas City metro area about economic development in the region.

The KCADC is the primary area-wide economic development organization in the region, representing 18 counties, 50 communities, two states and more than two million residents in shaping the region’s economic future.

"OneKC has a vision for the Kansas City metropolitan area which focuses on attracting and developing industries of advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, and healthcare," Roberts said in the letter, " These much needed industries will strengthen the region’s workforce and increase employment opportunities in both Kansas and Missouri. OneKC’s vision for the Kansas City area will be a reality with the help of a WIRED initiative."

This was a highly competitive grant solicitation with 97 applications and with only 13 awarded. OneKC will receive $5 million a year for up to three years.

Senator Roberts is a senior member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and an outspoken advocate of technology and innovation in the workplace.