Several Seattle jobs will be positively impacted by a new round of funding.

The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation recently awarded $4.6 million in grants to various organizations throughout the Pacific Northwest area. That funding is part of a $15 million investment the foundation made last year.

The Seattle-based foundation, awarded grants to 66 nonprofits, 38 of which are based in Washington. Some of that funding will be used to create new jobs and support existing positions, according to an article by the Pudget Sound Business Journal.

One organization, for instance, will use its funding to enhance the area's "green-collar" industry. The White Center Community Development Association will receive a $200,000 grant that it intends to use to develop a green jobs training program aimed at young adults.

Other organizations in the Seattle area that received grants include:

• Washington State STEM Education Foundation - $400,000 to support professional development opportunities for teachers at Delta High School, which is a new high school focused on technology, science, engineering and math.
• Bainbridge Isle-based IslandWood - $50,000 to support a two-year program that will provide hands-on environmental education programs for youth in Seattle.
• Northwest African American Museum - $50,000 to develop a marketing and outreach program.
• Seattle Chamber Music Society - $25,000 to support the 2010 Summer Festival.

The Paul G. Allen Foundation was launched by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft Corporation, in 1988.

The Seattle area could certainly use the additional jobs that the funding will support, as the unemployment rate has increased and the city has continued to lose jobs on a monthly and yearly basis.

During December 2009, the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett area's unemployment rate increased from 8.4 percent to 9 percent, following a decrease from 9 percent during November. Despite the increase, the area's unemployment rate is still lower than the national rate of 10 percent.

The area had a total non-farm employment of 1,414,200 workers during December, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 1,415,400 workers during November and a 3.4 percent decrease from December 2008.

Labels: Seattle jobs