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WDA defends self over $5 million grant to College of St. Joseph the Worker

DISCUSSION — West Virginia Water Development Authority member Mike Clowser listens as WDA Executive Director Marie Prezioso presents a report on Economic Enhancement Grant Fund award made in 2024. -- Steven Allen Adams

CHARLESTON — An agency that awarded a $5 million grant to an out-of-state Catholic vocational school for expansion efforts in West Virginia said their only focus was creating additional workforce training opportunities and that their agreement prevents the creation of a conservative think tank as originally proposed.

The West Virginia Water Development Authority met Thursday to consider 17 requests for Economic Enhancement Grant Fund (EEGF) awards for various water and wastewater infrastructure projects and economic development projects across the state.

During that meeting, WDA Executive Director Marie Prezioso said her agency awarded EEGF funding to 161 projects across West Virginia in 2024, including 72 sewer projects, 61 water infrastructure projects, and 28 economic development projects in 51 counties. Those projects were funded in part through the federal American Rescue Plan Act – more than $432 million in projects that pulled down approximately $1.8 billion in private investment.

“I think that everybody can attest we’ve probably not done as many projects for water and sewer in any other year as we have this year,” Prezioso said. “That put a lot of projects into local communities.”

“I think it’s definitely a story that would be worth telling and reporting on,” said WDA board member Amy Swann, the former executive director of the West Virginia Rural Water Association. “There are projects that got done that, I’ll be honest, I didn’t think I would see done in my lifetime…It really is an incredible amount of work that’s been performed.”

Speaking after Thursday’s meeting, Prezioso said that including the 161 ARPA-funded projects and other EEGF projects funded through other sources – including supplemental appropriations made by the West Virginia Legislature – the total number of EEGF projects goes to more than 200.

One of the EEGF projects awarded in October went to the College of St. Joseph the Worker, a Steubenville-based college affiliated with the Catholic Church. The College was awarded $5 million by the WDA through the EEGF following advocacy for the College by Del. Pat McGeehan, R-Hancock, with officials in Gov. Jim Justice’s office.

All students at the College of St. Joseph the Worker earn a Bachelor of Arts in Catholic Studies while also receiving training in several trades, including carpentry, HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. The College promotes graduating students with zero debt.

According to a grant proposal sent by email on Oct. 2 to Justice Chief of Staff Brian Abraham by McGeehan, the College’s proposed using the $5 million award to create a construction and real estate company headquartered in Weirton for training apprentices, scholarships for the recruitment of West Virginia students and training facilities near Weirton, and creation of a branch campus in the Kanawha County/Putnam County area.

Grant proposals by the College also included using $1 million of the EEGF award for advocacy, including $750,000 to create the “Center for the Common Good” to support “life-affirming policy in West Virginia.” This think tank would focus on conservative public policy – specifically citing abortion and immigration/border policy as examples – using research, op-eds, speeches, educational tools, presentations, and proposals for the West Virginia Legislature.

WDA officials acknowledged Thursday that the College’s proposal included the $1 million advocacy line item. However, the WDA points to provisions in the grant agreement signed by the College that prevents the use of EEGF monies for anything other than workforce training.

“The Project consists of the acquisition, construction and equipping of multiple education facilities for the in-class and on-site training of the five major construction trades of HVAC, carpentry, masonry, electrical and plumbing (including areas for tools and equipment storage), materials for training, and all necessary appurtenances thereto,” according to the agreement signed Oct. 10 by Prezioso and Michael Sullivan, president of the College of St. Joseph the Worker.

The grant agreement further states that the EEGF monies can only be used for the purposes set forth the in the project description. The College is required in the agreement to provide the WDA with a project budget with pre-audits and post-audits of the project. The $5 million must be spent by Oct. 10, 2029. Any unauthorized use of EEGF monies by the College would have to be paid to the WDA.

Prezioso also referred to her Oct. 10 email to Andrew Jones, the academic dean and professor of history and political theory at the College of St. Joseph the Worker, to revise the proposed budget for the College’s EEGF request based on the signed agreement.

“The grant must be used for a project that consists of the acquisition, construction and equipping of multiple education facilities for the in-class and on-site training of the five major construction trades of HVAC, carpentry, masonry, electrical and plumbing, including areas for tools and equipment storage, materials for training and all necessary appurtenances,” Prezioso wrote.

The Economic Enhancement Grant Fund was created by the Legislature in 2022 by House Bill 4566, which empowers the WDA to create a EEGF subaccount to provide grants to governmental agencies and not-for-profits to cover all or portions of costs for infrastructure projects.

According to State Code, funds in this EEGF subaccount can be used “to cover all or a portion of the infrastructure projects to enhance economic development and/or tourism when recommended by the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Economic Development and/or the Secretary of Tourism.”

Both the WDA and the Governor’s Office confirmed that no written recommendation from a cabinet secretary was submitted for the College’s EEGF request, only that there was a verbal commitment from the Department of Economic Development to provide a recommendation at a later date.

Prezioso cited the departures in October of former Department of Economic Development Secretary Mitch Carmichael and former Department of Commerce Secretary James Bailey as creating confusion at the time. She also cited the support for the project by Justice Chief of Staff Abraham and Deputy Chief of Staff Ann Urling, who also chairs the WDA.

Prezioso also cited the need for more workforce training opportunities. Union leaders and advocates for manufacturing in West Virginia have raised concerns over the last several years about shortages of trained workers to meet the growing demand as major manufacturing projects begin to take root in the state.

“All I’ve been hearing about is how we don’t have enough trained workers,” Prezioso said. “This project will be another source of training to get much-needed workers into the workforce.”

The Northern Panhandle already includes several workforce training programs. West Virginia Northern Community College in Wheeling offers several short-term training programs and multi-year certificates for trades, such as HVAC, electrical, and industrial/construction/trades.

“West Virginia Northern Community College (WVNCC) has been a longstanding provider of educational and workforce development services in the Ohio Valley,” according to a statement released by WVNCC. “We take pride in the fact that we provide affordable education and workforce training to students we are likely to stay in our communities and impact the regions we serve. Being one of the most affordable colleges in the state, including free tuition through West Virginia Invests, our students are fortunate to enter the workforce with little to no debt.”

News of the College of St. Joseph the Worker’s EEGF award garnered criticism from both the West Virginia Chapter of the ACLU and the state Democratic Party.

“Tens of thousands of West Virginians lack clean drinking water. Funneling $5 million in West Virginia Water Development funds to a highly partisan, out-of-state religious organization is reprehensible and wholly inappropriate,” said ACLU-WV Director Eli Baumwell. “Public money should not be used to promote private, religious interests in other states. We will be monitoring the situation and are prepared to intervene if necessary.”

“This decision is an insult to every West Virginian who is struggling to access clean drinking water,” said state Democratic Party Chairman Del. Mike Pushkin. “West Virginia tax dollars should support clean drinking water and functional infrastructure, not funding for out-of-state pet projects.”

But Prezioso points out that while the WDA does provide funding for economic development projects, most of the agency’s work continues to be funding water and wastewater infrastructure. For example, in Weirton which has dealt with water issues recently, the WDA provided design funding for Weirton’s $44.2 million water treatment plant upgrades. The WDA also provided the project a $1 million EEGF award and a $14.7 million low interest loan for the project, which broke ground in June.

For Weirton’s $42.2 million sewer treatment plant upgrade project, the WDA also provided design funding and an EEGF award of $17.2 million. The project broke ground last March.

“WDA is authorized by Statute to fund projects for governmental agencies and not-for-profits,” Prezioso said in an email earlier this week. “Currently, about 83 percent goes to Water/Sewer projects. This is in line with the IJDC (West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council) Infrastructure Fund that does 80 percent/20 percent split.”

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