The U.S. Department of Labor is awarding $183.8 million to 23 higher education institutions and their private-sector partners to support the development and expansion of apprenticeships.
Last week, the department announced the Scaling Apprenticeship Through Sector-Based Strategies grants to private-public apprenticeship partnerships in information technology, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare.
Funded through H-1B visa fees, the grants will support the training of more than 85,000 apprentices in new or expanded apprenticeship programs and increase apprenticeship opportunities for women, people of color, veterans, military spouses, service members, and others.
Working together, public and private sector entities will develop and implement new apprenticeship models or expand on existing apprenticeship programs. The department also announced a new solicitation to award up to $100 million in grant funds for the Apprenticeships: Closing the Skills Gap grant program.
“The apprenticeship model of earning while learning has worked well in many American industries, and today we open opportunities for apprenticeships to flourish in new sectors of our economy,” U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta said.
“With 7.4 million open jobs and job creators searching for skilled job seekers, apprenticeship expansion will continue to close the skills gap and strengthen the greatest workforce in the world – the American workforce.”
The department also issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would establish a process for the U.S. Department of Labor to advance the development of high-quality, industry-recognized apprenticeship programs (IRAPs), as well as a revised Training and Employment Notice that accompany applications for entities seeking to recognize IRAPs.
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