A Senate appropriations subcommittee has given initial approval to more than $850,000 in funding for Bangor-area organizations.

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education approved $860,000 for three organizations in the Bangor region, according to a press release from Sen. Susan Collins, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The funding breakdown:

• $385,000 for Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems in Brewer to improve hospice and palliative care in rural communities by extending best practice models to rural hospitals, home care and hospice agencies, nursing homes and clinics in the region;
• $250,000 for the Challenger Learning Center in Bangor to increase access to science, technology, engineering and mathematics education for middle school students statewide;
• $225,000 for Eastern Maine Development Corp. in Bangor to sponsor career and educational programming for seventh-graders in Penobscot, Piscataquis, Hancock and Washington counties.

The funding must still receive approval from the full Senate Appropriations Committee before moving onto consideration by the full Senate, according to the press release.