HomeNewsroomPress releasesClayton, Clayton Foundation donate $500,000 to Ruth and Steve West Workforce Development Center

Clayton, Clayton Foundation donate $500,000 to Ruth and Steve West Workforce Development Center

August 9, 20192 min read

National home builder makes donation commitment to Pellissippi State Community College of East Tennessee to build new workforce development center

Two longtime supporters of Pellissippi State Community College have continued their philanthropy with generous donations to construct the Ruth and Steve West Workforce Development Center on the college’s Blount County Campus.

Clayton, headquartered in Maryville, and the Clayton Foundation each have pledged $250,000 to the project for a total commitment of $500,000.

Clayton Foundation Managing Director Michell Clayton and Clayton Director of Philanthropy Susan Brown presented Pellissippi State President L. Anthony Wise Jr. with the donation commitments Wednesday at Clayton’s home office in Maryville.

“These gifts are a continuation of a long partnership with Clayton and the Clayton Foundation to educate Blount County students and prepare them to enter the local workforce with the skills they need to create a bright future for themselves and their families, right here in Blount County,” Wise said.

The Clayton donations to The Campaign for Pellissippi State will help build the new workforce development center, a $16.5 million project that Denark Construction expects to break ground on this winter. The 53,000-square-foot building that is being designed by BarberMcMurry Architects will be used by Pellissippi State and Tennessee College of Applied Technology Knoxville to help fill the area’s need for highly skilled, college-educated employees.

Pellissippi State’s part of the new building is expected to house a Smart Factory MegaLab featuring Industry 4.0 curriculum and offer classes in Computer Information Technology, Culinary Arts, Electrical Engineering Technology and Mechanical Engineering Technology. Meanwhile, TCAT’s part of the new building is expected to include classes in Industrial Electrical Maintenance and Welding, Machine Tool Technology and Pipe Fitting.

About Clayton

Founded in 1956, Clayton is committed to opening doors to a better life and building happyness® through homeownership. As a diverse builder committed to quality and durability, Clayton offers traditional site-built homes and off-site built housing – including modular homes, manufactured homes, CrossMod® homes, tiny homes, college dormitories, military barracks and apartments. All Clayton Built® homes are proudly designed and constructed in America. In 2022, Clayton built 62,620 homes across the country. Clayton is a Berkshire Hathaway company. For more information, visit claytonhomes.com.*CrossMod is a registered trademark of the Manufactured Housing Institute. *

“The workforce development center represents a unique, integrated approach to workforce development with a K-12 partnership, offering duel enrollment classes for high school students, focusing on high-demand career skills; a TCAT partnership, which will give that college its first footprint in Blount County; and industry partnerships developed to meet local demands, including a new corporate training center that will give local companies extra space and opportunity to train their employees at Pellissippi State,” Wise added. “This effort supports great jobs and successful careers for our children and grandchildren right here at home in Blount County.”