With some help from a member of the state intervention, Selma City Schools has received a $20,000 grant for its career technical program.

David Wilson, a state intervention team member working with Selma City School’s career technical program, announced Selma City Schools received a $20,000 grant from the Alabama State Department of Education to be used for their school system health science portion of their career technical program.

“We can use this money effectively,” Wilson said. “Hopefully, at the end of this we can meet the needs and wants of our instructors in the career tech program.”

Wilson said the Alabama Department of Education allocates $178,000 to every district with a career technical program with a portion of that money available for a competitive grant.

Selma City Schools applied for the competitive grant money distributed the first time around but was denied. The school system reapplied for a grant, which would stem from the redistributing of additional reserved money from the $178,000 bond and received a $20,000 portion.

Wilson said the money would be used for health science supplies such as hospital beds, modules, manikins and more.

“Those were needs that they had to continue in the program that will not have to come out of local funds or any, really, state career tech funds,” Wilson said. “We were able to use that competitive grant, so that is going to free up money for other programs as well.”

Wilson, who has accessed the career technical program, is doing well overall, but they could always use more students.

“All and all I think the career tech program in Selma is doing well,” Wilson said. “I think we have work to do, but I think it’s positive and I look forward to working with the teachers, the students, the community and the workforce development in this area.”