US DOL California State Apprenticeship Expansion Grant State Apprenticeship Expansion, Equity, and Innovation Grant (SAEEI)

Purpose

The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) and its Division of Apprenticeship Standards (DAS) are announcing the availability of approximately $7.3 million in funds to expand apprenticeship in California. The grant focuses on creating equitable registered apprenticeship programs for women, veterans, justice-involved, youth, people with disabilities, communities of color and unemployed individuals who were impacted by COVID-19.

Description

The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), on behalf of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency (LWDA), announces the availability of approximately $7.3 million in funds for the State Apprenticeship Expansion, Equity, and Innovation Grant (SAEEI) Gran. The SAEEI grant is awarded to design, develop, and implement projects that support and accelerate the creation of new or the expansion of existing Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAPs) for women, veterans, justice-involved, youth, people with disabilities, communities of color, and unemployed individuals impacted by COVID-19. The RAP model provides unemployed Californians with the opportunity to earn industry-recognized credentials that pave the way to living-wage jobs that stabilize California’s local economies. The grant funds will support projects that increase access for target populations, align WIOA programs, implement co-enrollment strategies, braiding other program funding, provide supportive services, and create onramps to career pathways for California’s women, veterans, justice-involved, youth, people with disabilities, communities of color, and dislocated workers including those impacted by COVID-19. The selected projects are required to work in collaboration with: · Local Workforce Development Board (WDB) · Employer/Organization/Industry Partner · Local Education Agency (LEA)/Academic Partner · Local/Regional Community Based Organizations (CBO) A total of $7,296,000.00 in the SAEEI Grant Funds are available through this grant. An estimated minimum of four awards ranging from $240,000 to $2,500,000 million will be awarded to each successful applicant. The Grants will not exceed $4,800 per Apprentice and projects must be completed by June 30, 2025. Grant recipients will receive a reimbursement of up to 25% of the overall award to be used for start-up costs. The remaining 75% sub-grant reimbursement will be disbursed through a pay-for-performance model to recipients after a 90-day retention of employment and registration. The state expects that the performance period for participating projects funded under this SAEEI Grant will be from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2025. No obligation or commitment of funds will be allowed before or beyond the grant period of performance. The DAS can develop a more efficient process for reviewing and evaluating applications if there is knowledge of the number of entities that intend to apply for funding under this competition. Each potential applicant is strongly encouraged to notify the DAS of its intent to apply by sending a brief email message with the applicant organization’s name and address to DASGrantUnit@dir.ca.gov address with “Intent to Apply” in the email subject line by March 1, 2022. Applicants that do not provide this email notification may still apply for funding.