RALEIGH, NC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the awarding of grants to 28 public-private apprenticeship partnerships totaling nearly $100 million through the Apprenticeship: Closing the Skills Gap grant program. These grants will support large-scale expansions of apprenticeship in industries including advanced manufacturing, healthcare and information technology.
President Donald J. Trump's Executive Order on Expanding Apprenticeship in America called for increasing the number of apprentices in the United States across all industries. There are more than 6.4 million job openings reported in the United States and expanding apprenticeships will help individuals gain the skills necessary to fill these vacancies.
"These grants will further the Administration's efforts to expand apprenticeships. For Americans who want an alternative to the traditional bachelor's degree, apprenticeships are a way to learn valuable skills that lead to good paying careers," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia. "Companies across the country tell me that their greatest challenge today is finding the skilled workers they need. This funding will bolster America's competitiveness by adding more skilled workers to fill millions of open jobs today and in the future."
Secretary Scalia made the announcement during a trip to North Carolina State University, one of the grantees.
The Apprenticeship: Closing the Skills Gap grant program will support the training of more than 92,000 individuals in new or expanded apprenticeship programs for a range of employers, including small and medium-sized businesses, veterans, military spouses, service members re-entering the civilian workforce and groups underrepresented in current apprenticeship programs, including women and Americans reentering the workforce from the justice system.
The grant program supports apprenticeships that include a paid, work-based learning component and a required educational or instructional component that results in the issuance of an industry-recognized credential; and which meet appropriate quality assurance standards.
H-1B fees fund the Apprenticeship: Closing the Skills Gap grant program. Awards ranging from $500,000 to $6 million each will go to 28 public-private apprenticeship partnerships led by institutions of higher education; state systems of higher education; nonprofit trade, industry, or employer associations; labor unions; or labor-management organizations partnering with businesses ready to train apprentices. This grant program places a heavy emphasis on private sector partnership, with a corresponding 45% match of federal funds awarded.
A list of grantees and award amounts is below:
Awardee
Headquarter Location
Award Amount
Aerospace Machinist Joint Training Committee
WA
$996,390
AFL-CIO Working for America
DC
$6,000,000
Alamo Community College District
TX
$1,000,000
American Association of Port Authorities
VA
$5,888,738
Argentum
VA
$5,991,235
Arkansas Division of Higher Education
AR
$2,000,000
Arizona Board of Regents, on behalf of Arizona State University
AZ
$1,999,285
Colorado Community College System
CO
$2,000,000
Electrical Training ALLIANCE
MD
$5,998,953
Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association
FL
$6,000,000
Goodwin College Inc.
CT
$2,000,000
H-CAP Inc.
NY
$4,000,000
Idaho State Board of Education
ID
$1,998,139
Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana
IN
$3,977,255
Missouri Chamber Foundation
MO
$6,000,000
North Carolina State University
NC
$5,999,799
Oakland Community College
MI
$4,000,000
Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner, State of Rhode Island
RI
$1,000,000
Regents of the University of Colorado/UOC-Colorado Springs
CO
$5,996,713
SHRM Foundation Inc.
VA
$972,000
Southern Utah University
UT
$3,977,088
Southwest Tennessee Community College
TN
$998,405
The Regents of the University of California (Davis)
CA
$5,492,408
The Regents of the University of California (Riverside)
CA
$999,501
University of Louisville Research Foundation Inc.
KY
$3,999,999
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
WI
$1,999,961
Wireless Infrastructure Association
VA
$5,997,096
Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership Inc.
WI
$1,998,251
The Employment and Training Administration administers federal government job training and dislocated worker programs, federal grants to states for public employment service programs and unemployment insurance benefits. These services are provided primarily through state and local workforce development systems.
The mission of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.
Agency Employment and Training Administration
Date February 18, 2020
Release Number 20-322-NAT