Labor Department Opens $65M for Community Colleges Under Workforce Pell
March 10, 2026 · 2 min read
Jared Klein
The U.S. Department of Labor has opened $65 million in grants for community colleges building short-term workforce training programs eligible for the new Workforce Pell Grants. Round 6 of the Strengthening Community Colleges (SCC) program expects to fund 6 to 10 awards, each between $6.5 million and $10.8 million.
Applications are due May 20, 2026.
Why Workforce Pell Changes the Equation
The Workforce Pell Grant expansion — signed into law as part of the 2024 reauthorization — allows students to use Pell Grant funding for short-term credential programs for the first time. Previously, Pell was restricted to programs lasting at least 15 weeks and 600 clock hours. The new rules open funding to programs as short as 150 clock hours.
But most community colleges lack the infrastructure to offer Pell-eligible short-term programs at scale. That's what SCC6 targets: building the administrative systems, employer partnerships, and data pipelines needed to make Workforce Pell work in practice.
What the Department Wants to See
Proposals must address three core elements: industry-driven strategies that demonstrate employer value, career pathways that enable worker mobility, and integration with state workforce systems including WIOA partners.
The Department will not fund more than one application per state, which means statewide community college systems and large consortia have a structural advantage. Applications that include integrated state-level data systems for tracking workforce outcomes receive priority.
Who Should Pay Attention
This is primarily a play for statewide community college systems, state workforce boards, and consortia that can demonstrate scale. Individual community colleges will need to partner up.
The grants also represent an opportunity for workforce development nonprofits and employer coalitions already engaged with community colleges — the DOL explicitly wants proposals showing existing industry partnerships, not aspirational ones.
A pre-recorded applicant webcast from March 4 is available on the DOL grants website. For organizations exploring additional workforce training funding, Granted tracks federal and state opportunities across workforce development, education, and economic development categories.