Press Releases

Maine First District Congresswoman Chellie Pingree today announced $1,000,000 in Community Project Funding (CPF) for St. George Municipal School Unit’s new Career and Technical Education (CTE) center in Tenants Harbor. Pingree secured the Congressionally-directed funding, along with more than $15.7 million in CPF for 14 other First District projects, in the Fiscal Year 2024 government funding package passed by the full House of Representatives today. 

“The St. George Career Technical Education/Makerspace Building will bring the trades, technology, and innovation back to the heart of public education and provide Pre-K through 8th-grade students access to hands-on curriculum previously only available to high schoolers. This first-of-its-kind Career and Technical Education center in Maine will not only engage students in learning, but will help them develop important technical and social-emotional skills needed to succeed in life and improve their communities,” said Pingree. “Teachers, parents, and St. George community members have been working to bring the Makerspace project to life for years, and I am overjoyed I could help push this project closer to the finish line.”

With the funding secured by Pingree, St. George MSU will be able to finish construction and furnish the new building with the necessary equipment, furniture, and technology – making the Makerspace operational. 

“This funding will be transformational for our school and community. It will allow us to complete construction of the CTE/Makerspace Building and realize our vision to provide all students, PreK-12, with access to Career & Technical Education (CTE),” said Mike Felton, St. George Municipal School Unit Superintendent. “Congresswoman Pingree's faith in our vision - and the incredible support she is providing to this project - will help us develop a model for communities across Maine and the nation who want to re-engage students in learning, build a more skilled and diversified workforce, and fuel local economic development. We will always be grateful for the Congresswoman's faith in our vision and support for our work.”

Background

Each year, the United States Congress considers and enacts annual appropriations bills that provide the federal government with the funding it needs to operate. In 2021, the House Appropriations Committee reestablished Community Project Funding after the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress found that congressionally directed spending boosted bipartisanship, facilitated member-to-member cooperation, and gave members an equal stake in the success of appropriations bills.

For the 2024 Fiscal Year, each House member was permitted to submit 15 projects for consideration, which had to be thoroughly vetted and publicly disclosed on their website.

Pingree has been a member of the House Appropriations Committee since 2013 and is Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies.

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