The B&O Railroad Museum has been awarded a $500,000 grant through the State of Maryland’s Road to Careers initiative to expand workforce training opportunities across state’s transportation and construction industries.
The initiative is part of a $4 million investment announced by Gov. Wes Moore. The funding will support the museum’s Restore Baltimore program, which is a workforce development program offered in partnership with the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) and the B&O Railroad Museum. Restore Baltimore is a six-month earn-and-learn program that offers training in rail operations, historic restoration and construction trades, and facilities management. Participants receive skilled trades instruction with hands-on experience at the museum’s 40-acre campus. They also earn $15 per hour during the program.
In addition to instruction, participants get services like help with transportation, housing, legal aid, career coaching, and job placement. This assistance is critical to long-term success, especially since many program participants are actively improving their lives after having been incarcerated, or are in recovery, or have been through long periods of underemployment. Funding for the program comes from federal grants, state investments, corporate sponsors, and individual gifts.
“Restore Baltimore is a program that meets participants where they are and changes lives moving the graduates into family wage-earning jobs,” said Kris Hoellen, executive director of the B&O Railroad Museum. “We have essentially turned our campus into a school where students spend six months on our campus receiving expert instruction and critical wrap-around services. We are so appreciative of this funding as these programs are an investment in people who frequently received little to no investment in their education.”
Since the program began, Restore Baltimore has an 84% graduation and job placement rate. The program size is intentionally small, typically 10–12 people per year, to ensure deep, individualized support. Graduates have moved from completing the program to having careers with employers like Norfolk Southern, Canton Railroad, Whole Foods Market, LifeBridge Health, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company and specialized apprentice programs, among others.
Restore Baltimore gives participants the chance to earn certifications, including National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) Core Basic Construction Skills, OSHA 10 for General Industry, First Aid/CPR/AED, forklift operation, and the Museum’s Blue Flag Rail Safety certification. They work on real world projects to compile a portfolio of completed work for potential employers to see, along with being able to demonstrate on-time attendance for six months.
The larger Road to Careers program is a six-year, $24 million state investment in Maryland’s workforce. The Labor and Transportation departments launched the initiative to increase the number of skilled workers in the transportation construction sector. It offers pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship opportunities while providing wraparound services to support participants and help them complete the training and find jobs.
Cohort 9 of Restore Baltimore began on Monday, Apr. 27, and recruitment for the next cohort is expected to open in August 2026. Information sessions will be held at the B&O Railroad Museum.
