Biden-Harris Administration announces nearly $200M available in grants to expand Registered Apprenticeships

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of nearly $200 million in grants to continue to support public-private partnerships that expand, diversify and strengthen Registered Apprenticeship. The funding opportunity includes $95 million of competitive grants through the second round of the Apprenticeship Building America Grant Program and $100 million in the second round of State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula Grants. The announcement is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s fourth Investing in America tour, during which Administration officials are traveling across the country and making new announcements highlighting the impact of President Biden’s agenda on communities, families, and workers nationwide. 

“The second round of Apprenticeship Building America funding announced today continues the Department of Labor’s commitment to providing all of America’s workers with access to training and career preparation that leads to good jobs with family-sustaining wages,” said Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su. “These grants serve as another avenue toward strengthening the nation’s workforce development infrastructure to connect people from all communities to the good jobs being created by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.”

The department’s Employment and Training Administration will use these funds to prioritize projects that support the Investing in America agenda—including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, and Inflation Reduction Act—by expanding access to Registered Apprenticeships in high-demand sectors and occupations. These sectors include:

• Information technology/cybersecurity
• K-12 teacher occupations
• Care economy (nursing, early child care, mental health occupations)
• Clean energy
• Hospitality
• Public sector
• Supply chain sectors (logistics, warehousing, transportation, manufacturing)

The Apprenticeship Building America Grant Program seeks to leverage Registered Apprenticeship as a workforce solution while ensuring that people from underrepresented and underserved communities can access high-quality training and pre-apprenticeships that lead directly to enrollment in a Registered Apprenticeship program. 

The department will award 12 to 25 grants, ranging from $1 million to $8 million, in three categories depending on the geographic scope:

• Category 1 – Ensuring equitable Registered Apprenticeship Program pathways and partnerships through pre-apprenticeship leading to Registered Apprenticeship enrollment.
• Category 2 – Creation of education system-aligned pre-apprenticeship programs and Registered Apprenticeship programs.
• Category 3 – Registered Apprenticeship hubs.

Successful applicants will integrate strategies that align with the administration’s priorities for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, and expand the availability of jobs that support the High Road to the Middle Class for all workers. 

Learn more about the second round of Apprenticeship Building America grants and apply. 

Learn more about the State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula grants.