YOUNGSTOWN — The Northeast Ohio Correctional Center has given $10,000 to the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber Foundation to support efforts to grow the Mahoning Valley’s workforce.

The correctional center in Hubbard, and its parent company CoreCivic, provide educational, vocational, substance abuse and faith-based programs that help inmates develop skills and values they need to be successful when they leave prison.

The foundation is the charitable arm of the Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber that supports economic and workforce development initiatives.

As the chamber has launched strategies to grow the population to help meet rapid job creation and increase workforce participation rates for the local region by identifying and removing barriers to employment, the work and mission of the two organizations closely align, a press release states.

“We are teaching those at our facility career skills so they will be ready for the workforce when they’re released. This will help bridge the gap for unemployment and provide work opportunities to individuals, thereby encouraging them to stay in our community,” said Doug Fender, correctional center warden.