Current Grant Funding Opportunities 

YouthBuild - FOA-ETA-24-36

Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), DOL will award grants through a competitive process to organizations providing pre-apprenticeship services that support education, occupational skills training, and employment services to opportunity youth, ages 16 to 24, who are performing meaningful work and service to their communities.  The YouthBuild program model prepares participants for quality jobs in a variety of careers, in diverse industry sectors, particularly in infrastructure sectors, and includes wrap-around services such as mentoring, trauma-informed care, personal counseling, transportation supports, and employment preparation - all key strategies for addressing violence in communities. YouthBuild applicants must include construction skills training and may include occupational skills training in other in-demand industries. This expansion into additional in-demand industries is the Construction Plus component. 

Eligible applicants for these grants are public or private non-profit agencies or organizations, including consortia of such agencies or organizations.  These organizations include rural, urban, or Native American/Tribal entities that have previously served opportunity youth in a YouthBuild or other similar program. DOL will fund approximately 75 projects across the country.  Individual grants will range from $700,000 to $1.5 million and require a 25 percent match from applicants, using sources other than federal funding.  This FOA features a matching waiver for Tribal entities and U.S. insular areas which allows these entities to not include a match commitment in their applications. The grant period of performance for this FOA is 40 months, including a four-month planning period and a twelve-month follow-up period. 

Questions regarding this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) may be emailed to Heron.Alexander.E@dol.gov. We encourage prospective applicants and interested parties to use the Grants.gov subscription option to register for future updates provided for this particular FOA.

Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants - FOA-ETA-23-15 (SCC4)

The fourth round of Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants (SCC4) will increase the capacity and responsiveness of community colleges to meet the skill development needs of employers and equitably support students in obtaining good jobs in in-demand industries.  Applicants will use strategies rooted in evidence and designed to build further evidence on the effectiveness of sector-based career pathways programs in leading to positive employment outcomes. These strategies will also address identified equity gaps to increase full access to educational and economic opportunity–particularly for individuals from historically underserved communities.  

The lead applicant of an SCC Partnership must be a community college that is a public institution as defined in Section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act, and at which the associate degree is primarily the highest degree awarded. The lead may apply as a single institution or as a consortium of two or more colleges in a common labor market area. Consortium members may include community colleges and public and private, non-profit four-year institutions, as defined in Section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act. Institutions that were funded in the first three rounds of SCC as either leads or consortium members may apply as leads or consortium members under this fourth round if they focus on a different industry sector than in prior rounds.

Employers and the public workforce development system are required partners for all projects, which must also include a sector convener partner unless the lead or another partner serves in that role. Partnerships with unions or labor-management organizations are encouraged in support of good jobs. Partnerships with community-based organizations, adult education providers, and tribal entities, as relevant, are encouraged in support of equitable employment outcomes in good jobs.

Prospective Applicant Webinar

             Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (Updated October 16, 2023)

 

Critical Sector Job Quality Grants - FOA-ETA-23-13

The purpose of this demonstration program is to support transformative efforts to improve job quality and availability of good jobs, particularly for the benefit of historically marginalized populations and communities that have experienced barriers to employment in good jobs. The primary focus of these demonstration grants is expanding job quality in the care, climate resiliency and clean energy transition, and hospitality sectors. These demonstration grants will support industry-led, worker-centered sector strategies built through labor-management partnerships aimed at improving job quality in key sectors. These partnerships will address equity, job quality, and worker voice as they design training models and train workers for family-supporting jobs. High-quality jobs, for the purposes of this grant program, include those that offer family-sustaining wages and benefits, have predictable hours and schedules, are filled through transparent and nondiscriminatory hiring and promotion practices, offer clear paths for advancement, always prioritize worker health and safety, and include workers’ voices in the workplace. Projects under this announcement will fund both short-term capacity-building planning grants and longer-term implementation grants. This funding is authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) sec. 169(c) and appropriated under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 (Pub. L. 117-103, Div. H) for carrying out Demonstration and Pilot projects related to the employment and training needs of dislocated workers, other adults, or youth. Questions regarding this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) may be emailed to DOL-ETA-DWG@dol.gov. We encourage prospective applicants and interested parties to use the Grants.gov subscription option to register for future updates provided for this particular FOA.

Prospective Applicant Information and Webcast

Workforce Opportunities for Rural Communities (WORC) Round 5: A Grant Initiative for the Appalachian, Delta, and Northern Border Regions - FOA-ETA-23-07

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL, or the Department), announces the availability of approximately $44,200,000 in grant funds authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) for the fifth round of Workforce Opportunity for Rural Communities (WORC) Initiative demonstration grants. The WORC Initiative provides grant funds to enable impacted communities to develop local and regional workforce development solutions aligned with existing economic development strategies and community partnerships to promote new, sustainable job opportunities and long-term economic vitality. Questions regarding this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) may be emailed to DOL-ETA-DWG@dol.gov. We encourage prospective applicants and interested parties to use the Grants.gov subscription option to register for future updates provided for this particular FOA.

Workforce Data Quality Initiative - WDQI Round 9 - FOA-ETA-23-05

The purpose of this program is to support the development or expansion of state workforce longitudinal administrative databases. Collecting and analyzing longitudinal data can provide a comprehensive picture of whether education programs lead to employment in related fields, whether jobseekers are obtaining training-related employment, and the impact of training on workers’ earnings throughout their careers. Through such deep dive analyses, states can identify service delivery strategies that improve employment opportunities, as well as demonstrate the benefits of education and workforce programs on employment outcomes. Data linkages can help state and local leaders identify effective pathways through education and training services that lead to success in the workforce and can provide individuals with information that helps them make informed choices about their education and career(s).

  • Issue Date: April 10, 2023
    Closing date: May 10, 2023

            Full Announcement (pdf format)

 

DOL Building Pathways to Infrastructure Jobs Grant Program- FOA-ETA-23-31

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) solicits applications for the DOL Building Pathways to Infrastructure Jobs Grant Program. Applications are due July 7, 2023. 

The purpose of the DOL Building Pathways to Infrastructure Jobs Grant Program is to fund public-private partnerships to develop, implement, and scale worker-centered sector strategy training programs that train and prepare the skilled workforce needed to meet the demands of the sizeable infrastructure investments made through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), formally known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. To maximize the impact of the BIL investment, and other investments such as the CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors) and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, this grant program will train job seekers in advanced manufacturing; information technology; and professional, scientific, and technical services occupations that support renewable energy, transportation, and broadband infrastructure sectors. To achieve the goals of the FOA, applicants are required to propose grant projects that address one of the following two training tracks. Both tracks are expected to serve historically marginalized and underserved populations and communities.

a.    Development Track: Developing and Implementing Local/Regional Worker-Centered Sector Strategy Programs
The goal of the Development Track is to establish local and regional partnerships that will foster the implementation of an effective, worker-centered sector training program in one or more infrastructure-related sectors.
b.    Scaling Track: Scaling Effective Worker-Centered Sector Strategy Programs
The goal of the Scaling Track is to invest in established partnerships that have demonstrated effectiveness in implementing sector strategy training programs in one or more infrastructure-related sectors.

These grants also emphasize using career pathways programs that lead to credentials recognized by employers, work-based learning training models, including Registered Apprenticeships, and supportive services to increase participation and retention in these programs.  

A prospective applicant webinar and Frequently Asked Questions will be posted to this website on or around April 20, 2023.

Prospective Applicant Webinar

  • Issue Date: April 5, 2023
    Closing date: July 7, 2023

          Full Announcement (PDF format) 

          Amendment One (PDF Format)

         Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (Updated June 30, 2023)

 

Workforce Pathways for Youth – FOA-ETA-23-06

This announcement solicits applications for the Workforce Pathways for Youth grant program. The purpose of this program is to increase alignment between the workforce development system, schools, and OST programs and leverage the roles responsibilities, resources, and expertise of these three entities in order to expand work-based learning opportunities, job training and career pathways for youth living in rural areas.

Prospective Applicant Webinar

 

State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula – FOA-ETA-23-09

This Funding Opportunity Announcement solicits applications for the Sate Apprenticeship Expansion Formula (SAEF) grant program. This FOA supports a coordinated, national investment strategy that aims to strengthen and modernize the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) system. The SAEF grant program is intended to better support State capacity and State planning to create new RAPs while also driving system innovation and reform, the Department intends to provide, on an on-going basis, annual funding to all States that apply, as well as an opportunity for States to apply for additional competitive funding.

              Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

 

Pathway Home 4 – FOA-ETA-23-04

The Pathway Home Grant Program builds on the findings of the Linking Employment Activities Pre-Release (LEAP) implementation study. The LEAP pilots provided pre-release services through jail-based American Job Centers and linked participants to post-release services. By providing for reentry services to begin while participants are still incarcerated and to continue post-release, these projects are designed to eliminate the time gap between release from prison and enrollment into a workforce development reentry program leading to skills-based employment, to improve individuals' transition back into their communities, and to reduce recidivism. These projects will serve adults aged 18 or older who have been convicted under federal, state, or local law and are incarcerated in state correctional facilities or local or county jails with scheduled release dates within 20 to 270 days of enrollment in the project.

Prospective Applicant Webinar