Burns: $2.5 million available for school-to-work programs

Grants to foster partnerships between schools, employers

EBENSBURG, Sept. 13 – State Rep. Frank Burns, D-Cambria, is urging any local pre-apprenticeship programs to consider applying for state grants of up to $250,000 as part of a $2.5 million Schools-to-Work Program.

“In the past I’ve been successful in securing funding for student training programs that are designed to give our students a leg-up on post-school career opportunities,” Burns said. “It is critical that we continue to build that trained workforce pipeline, so that when employers look at Cambria County, they know we’re open and ready for business.”

The $2.5 million of available funding will be awarded in increments up to $250,000 to be used for classroom training, workplace visits, internships, apprenticeships, mentorships, employment opportunities, job shadowing and externships, as well as additional resources.

This round of Schools-to-Work funding follows two previous rounds of grants in recent months (more information on Round 1 and Round 2) totaling about $5.6 million to 24 programs.

Successful project applications should create career opportunities that lessen the gap between high school and employment or post-secondary education through the use of pre-apprenticeships.

Applicants must be registered with the department as a pre-apprenticeship program and be connected to a registered apprenticeship program that will be responsible for administering and operating a pre-apprenticeship program.

Additional details and the grant application for the Schools-to-Work grants can be found on the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry’s website. Applications for Round 3 of the Schools-to-Work grants are due by 4 p.m. on Oct. 12. Programs funded under Round 3 of Schools-to-Work grants will operate from June 1, 2023 - May 31, 2025.