WASHINGTON –  Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $3.9 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan for the Community College Workforce Alliance in Disputanta to expand regional workforce training programs to support the Richmond-Petersburg Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (APM) cluster and help Virginians get the skills they need for jobs in the advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing and biotechnology industries. The APM cluster, which is led by the Virginia Biotechnology Research Partnership Authority, manufactures critical drugs and active pharmaceutical ingredients. The funding was allocated through the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Good Jobs Challenge.

“The Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing cluster has seen tremendous growth in recent years, and I am thrilled by the innovation that has taken place,” said Warner. “This funding, courtesy of the American Rescue Plan, for the Community College Workforce Alliance will continue to build on these efforts, ensuring that we have a capable, ready workforce to step into the good-paying, skilled jobs created in the Petersburg region.” 

“As a city councilman, mayor, governor, and senator, I’ve been proud of what we’ve done to grow the Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing cluster and onshore the manufacturing of essential medicines and their ingredients. I’m thrilled the Community College Workforce Alliance in Disputanta is receiving federal funding from the American Rescue Plan we passed to help further the cluster’s innovative efforts and ensure we have the workforce needed to fill these critical roles,” said Kaine. “I will continue working to support the APM cluster and help Virginians access good-paying manufacturing jobs in advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing and biotechnology.”

Warner and Kaine have long supported the APM cluster in Richmond/Petersburg and have supported policies to strengthen domestic manufacturing of critical medicines. In 2023, the APM cluster was designated as a Tech Hub under the CHIPS and Science Act for its innovative work in advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing. The senators also worked to secure $52.9 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan for the cluster. In August 2024, Kaine toured Phlow Corp., a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in the Virginia APM cluster, which produces critical medicines and boosts the national supply chain. In April 2022, Kaine visited the cluster to learn more about its efforts to streamline prescription drug manufacturing. Kaine helped form and grow the Virginia Biotechnology Research Partnership Authority while he was on Richmond City Council, served on the Authority’s board as Mayor of Richmond, and appointed its board members as Governor of Virginia. 

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