The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), announces the availability of grant funds for the Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants (Round 6) program.
Donor Name: Employment and Training Administration
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 03/20/2026
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: 4 Years
Details:
This sixth round of SCC intends to promote statewide capacity building efforts to develop and/or expand high-quality, short-term programs that will seek eligibility for the newly authorized Workforce Pell Grants. Section 83002 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21) authorizes Workforce Pell Grants to provide access to federal financial aid for students enrolled in high-quality, short-term workforce programs that are defined as at least 150 clock hours of instruction and less than 600 clock hours (or the equivalent in credit hours) and at least 8 weeks, but less than 15 weeks, in duration, that have demonstrated success in job placement and completion rates for students.
SCC6 will focus on the design and delivery of education and training programs that meet employers’ hiring requirements and have strong employment outcomes. The intent is to fund programs that will be positioned, in relatively short order, to meet the eligibility requirements for Workforce Pell Grants. These efforts may include both the development of brand-new programs, in consultation with employers, that are designed to meet Workforce Pell eligibility requirements and fill critical workforce skill gaps, as well as efforts to enhance existing programs, such as stacking multiple shorter complementary trainings into a program that both meets the clock hours and duration requirements for Workforce Pell, as well as the desired competency and skill needs of employers.
This round of funding will continue to support capacity-building efforts that strengthen the connection between community colleges and industry to ensure that employers are playing a central role in defining in-demand skills, validating curricula and credential or certification programs, and developing clear pathways via the new Workforce Pell programs into high-skill, high-wage, or in-demand job opportunities in collaboration with the community college grantees.
Goals and Objectives
To ensure that SCC6 grant projects accomplish the goals of the FOA, the Department will fund applications that address, in their proposals, how the project will expand statewide capacity of Workforce Pell-eligible programs through each of the required SCC6 Core Elements:
- Core Element 1: Industry-Driven Strategies with Demonstrated Employer Value
- Core Element 2: Worker Mobility through Career Pathways Programs
- Core Element 3: Workforce System Integration to Expand Training Options
Funding Information
- Expected Total Available Funding $65,000,00
- Funding Range Per Award $6,500,000 – $10,800,000
Project Period
48 months
Eligibility Criteria
Participants eligible to receive services provided through this program represent three primary categories that are named in the appropriation: new entrants to the workforce or who have been out of the workforce for a long enough time as though they are entering the workforce for the first time, dislocated workers, and employed workers. They note that the categories are broad enough to encompass participants who would be eligible for Workforce Pell.
For the purposes of this FOA, these categories are defined as follows:
- Dislocated Workers: People who were terminated or laid off from employment; have received a notice of termination or layoff from employment; or were self-employed but are now unemployed.
- Employed Workers: For the purposes of this FOA, this term refers to individuals who are employed but need training to secure full-time employment, advance in their careers, or attain employment in higher-wage occupations. This includes low-wage and medium-wage workers who need to upgrade their skills to advance in their careers, and workers who are currently working part-time.
- New Entrants to the Workforce: People who have never worked before. This category also includes people who have been out of the workforce for a long enough time to make it as if they are entering the workforce for the first time. For example, this may include, but is not limited to, long-term unemployed or ex-offenders. Youth who are enrolled in their junior or senior year of high school and who could be employed no later than six months after the end of the grant lifecycle, and youth who have dropped out of school and are seeking their first full-time job are also eligible, consistent with Federal and state wage and employment laws.
These broad categories of eligible participants include within them low-income individuals, exoffenders, and individuals with disabilities, among others.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
