US Labor Department Awards $65M to Boost Community College Workforce Training
The grants focus on boosting job training at diverse colleges, especially those within underserved communities.
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The US Department of Labor will be investing $65 million into community colleges throughout the country in efforts to better prepare the workforce for critical industries.
Made possible through the Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants program, this initiative will benefit 18 colleges in 14 states to gain access to quality training that leads to good employment opportunities.
Workforce training, which focuses on increasing the effectiveness of the working community, as well as impacting communities, will be the focus, per Diverse Education.
Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su emphasized that these job-guaranteed training programs are an aspect of the administration's effort to create programs to help entire communities by better offering opportunities for the workforce to achieve the skills needed to perform stable, high-paying jobs.
The plan supports the 'Investing in America' agenda promoted by the Biden-Harris administration for critical sectors: advanced manufacturing, healthcare, IT, and infrastructure.
Read more: College Degree No Longer a Requirement for 30,000 California State Jobs, Gov. Newsom Announced
Who Will Receive the $65M Grant?
Several colleges will be receiving the grants, among them are JF Drake State Community, Foothill-DeAnza Community College District in California, Technical College in Alabama, and the Little Priest Tribal College in Nebraska. The grant will assist the institutions in designing programs in accordance with the growing needs of industries.
Now, this initiative will include many aspects of diversity and inclusion.
According to DOL, the program seeks to serve underserved schools with a Tribally Controlled College, a Historically Black College and University (HBCU), and five Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs). Such colleges and its 23 other members will be devoted to the task of enhancing student career pathways as well as academic outcomes in predominantly marginalized communities.
This investment is both an indicator of the administration's commitment to workforce development and social equity. It seeks to enhance the capacity of students for in-demand jobs through diverse institutions, and therefore it seeks to bridge economic disparities. In doing so, this program would reach benefits broadly among workers, families, and local economies nationwide.
