Vallejo Housing Authority has been awarded $68,107 in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants that will continue a program to educate those living in public housing, U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa, said Tuesday.

Thompson represents Benicia in the U.S. House.

The money will be used for a Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program coordinator, said Anne Putney, director of the Vallejo Housing Authority (VHA).

“The FSS program is an excellent opportunity for Housing Choice Voucher Program participants to obtain resources to overcome the obstacles they face in achieving their career goals and moving forward on the path towards self-sufficiency,” Putney said.

The VHA had seven program graduates in Fiscal Year 2013-14, she said.

Those graduates have met their own goals, and Putney said the VHA is anticipating more graduates in the current fiscal year.

“The funding provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development enables us to continue providing these services, and we could not do it without our HUD partner,” she said.

Added Thompson: “These grants provide people with the skills and education they need to move up in the workforce.”

Funded though HUD’s Family Self-Sufficiency program, these grants let public housing agencies such as VHA work with social service agencies, community colleges, businesses and other local partners.

The collaboration helps residents of public housing and individuals participating in the HUD Housing Choice Voucher program increase their education or obtain marketable skills, Thompson said.

That, in turn, helps those residents gget jobs or advance in their current employment, the congressman said.

“Everyone who works hard, and plays by the rules should have the opportunity to get a job and save for a home of their own,” Thompson said.

“HUD’s Family Self-Sufficiency program helps families do just that, and I am a proud supporter of these important funds.”

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