LAURINBURG — Residents in Scotland County seeking employment and job-training assistance through the Lumbee Regional Development Association will no longer be able to apply for the program after LRDA was not awarded new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act funding for the county.
WIOA is a federal program that provides employment, training and related services to help people prepare for and find work.
LRDA announced that it also did not receive the WIOA grant to serve Robeson and Hoke counties. Effective immediately, the organization is no longer accepting new WIOA applications from American Indians living in those three counties.
The change does not affect current WIOA clients, who will continue to receive services through the program.
LRDA said it will continue serving American Indian clients in the western region of its previous service area and will provide additional information about its service area at a later date.
The organization also addressed rumors that it is shutting down.
“LRDA is not shutting its doors,” the organization said in a statement. “Our organization will look different moving forward, but we remain the same legacy organization founded out of love for the Lumbee people. Our commitment to this community will guide us as we determine what comes next.”
LRDA has provided workforce development and job-training services to the Lumbee community for more than 50 years through federal workforce programs, including WIOA.
The organization did not provide additional details about the new grant awards or when more information about its service area will be available.