LEAD TRAINING AWARDED $60K IN GRANTS FROM GE AEROSPACE FOUNDATION & BUTLER COUNTY UNITED WAY
Funding Will Support High School Student Career Pathways in Monroe and Cincinnati
CINCINNATI, OH – September 10, 2026 – LEAD Training, a growing Cincinnati-based nonprofit that helps primary and secondary students build life and career skills, has received $60,000 in grant funding from the GE Aerospace Foundation & Butler County United Way. The GE Aerospace Foundation Future of Manufacturing Fund will support LEAD’s Manufacturing Workforce Initiative, while the Butler County United Way funding will specifically support Career Quest students at Monroe High School.
“Both grants will provide critical support to high school students and work-based learning as they explore potential career paths,” noted Riley O’Grady, Founder and Executive Director, LEAD Training. The GE Aerospace Foundation created the Future of Manufacturing Fund to effectively close gaps in the region’s advanced manufacturing workforce. This is the third consecutive year that LEAD is being funded by the GE Aerospace Foundation. LEAD will utilize the GE Aerospace Foundation funding to provide student driver education and continuing education scholarships with the goal of placing 22 high school students in advanced manufacturing employment and a total of 443 students engaging in and completing manufacturing pathway activities as well as earning key credentials. For more information on the GE Aerospace Foundation, visit https://www.geaerospace.com/company/philanthropy.
LEAD will utilize the Butler County United Way funding to support about 40 Monroe High School students enrolled in Career Quest who are primarily in their senior year, define a career pathway and place them in suitable roles upon graduation.
About LEAD Training
LEAD Training is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit organization that helps students from kindergarten through young adulthood build the skills they need to succeed in life and career. LEAD designs and delivers impactful programs centered on career readiness, life skills and social-emotional learning (SEL) by instilling confidence and helping to create a clearer vision for their future. Through innovative programming such as its High School Workforce Initiative where 2,500 students participated and customized SEL modules and career coaching, LEAD works to guide students towards viable post-secondary paths, whether traditional college, polytechnic education, career or service. LEAD’s programs achieved measurable results in the 2024-25 school year including 93% of Career Quest seniors graduating with a clear career plan, 91% of High School SEL Future Leaders students reporting growth in their social-emotional skills, and a 96% overall satisfaction rate among students. To learn more about how LEAD fuels futures, schools and workforce development, visit https://www.lead-training.org/.
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