Supporting Apprenticeship Colleges Act of 2025
The Supporting Apprenticeship Colleges Act of 2025 would authorize federal funding to expand and support enrollment in higher education institutions that sponsor construction and manufacturing-oriented registered apprenticeship programs. It creates two grant programs administered by the Department of Education (in coordination with the Department of Labor): 1) a Community Outreach Grant Program to expand outreach to high schools, local employers (with an emphasis on rural, exurban, and suburban areas), and workforce intermediaries; and 2) a Student Support Grant Program to bolster academic advising and student services aimed at increasing retention, persistence, and completion in these apprenticeship programs. Eligible institutions can receive up to $500,000 per grant, and each program is funded at $5 million per year for 2026–2030. The bill defines key terms and requires reporting on program outcomes and alignment with workforce development performance indicators.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a Community Outreach Grant Program funded at $5 million per fiscal year (2026–2030) to help eligible institutions recruit students and engage employers for construction and manufacturing-oriented registered apprenticeship programs; grants capped at $500,000 per eligible entity.
- 2Outreach activities must include high school outreach to explain the benefits of the apprenticeship programs, employer outreach to build relationships and promote hiring graduates (with a focus on rural and similar areas), and collaboration with local workforce boards and apprenticeship intermediaries to reach nontraditional student populations.
- 3Provides preference in grant awards for entities that target rural students, first-generation college students, minority students, and other underrepresented groups.
- 4Establishes a Student Support Grant Program funded at $5 million per fiscal year (2026–2030) to fund advising and support services designed to improve enrollment, retention, persistence, and completion.
- 5Student support services must cover expanded academic advising (career guidance, ESL support, mentoring, resources) and student services (health, mental health, childcare, support for first-generation students, etc.), with a grant reporting requirement to measure outcomes and alignment with approved workforce indicators; grants capped at $500,000 per eligible entity.
- 6Allows an eligible entity to receive grants under both programs; require reporting within 180 days after activities conclude, including enrollment, completion, and credential attainment metrics, and progress toward Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) performance indicators.
- 7Defines key terms, including “construction and manufacturing-oriented apprenticeship college,” “recognized postsecondary credential,” and “underrepresented population,” and clarifies that programs must be accredited and lead to credentials or credits toward credentials.