Please specify at the top of your proposal whether you
intend to apply for the Individual Development or Cooperative Arrangement
Development Grant mechanism.
The Employment and Training Administration at the U.S.
Department of Labor (Labor) is soliciting applications in support of the
administration of the Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) on behalf of the
U.S. Department of Education (ED). The SIP Program provides grants to eligible
institutions of higher education (IHEs) to help them become self-sufficient and
expand their capacity to serve low-income students by providing funds to
improve and strengthen the institution's academic quality, institutional
management, and fiscal stability.
Through America’s Talent Strategy, and additional
initiatives like the Department of Labor’s Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Literacy Framework, Registered Apprenticeship goal to surpass million new
active apprentices, and the prioritization of Preparing Americans for
High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future, this Administration has elevated
workforce development and the reindustrialization of the United States as a
critical education aim. We must find ways to strengthen leadership in AI and
other advanced technologies, expand economic opportunity through sustained
investment in American workers and industry, and reimagine how students access
postsecondary education and earn a credential with real labor-market value.
This notice includes one absolute priority and four
competitive preference priorities. All applicants must address the Absolute
Priority. Additionally, applicants may address only one of the first three
competitive preference priorities. Eligible Rural applicants may also address
and earn points under competitive preference priority 4. Proposals should
clearly align with the chosen focus, whether strengthening career readiness,
expanding access to high-quality short-term training opportunities, or
advancing the integration of AI in education. Collectively, these efforts will
help build a more agile, skilled workforce and support the nation’s long-term
economic competitiveness and technological leadership.
- Absolute Priority 1-- Strengthening Institutional Capacity
Competitive Preference Priority 1—Career Pathways and
Workforce Readiness
Competitive Preference Priority 2—Developing high-quality,
short-term programs that meet Workforce Pell Grant requirements
Competitive Preference Priority 3—Advancing Artificial
Intelligence in Education
Competitive Preference Priority 4—Applications from Rural
IHEs
Individual Development Grants:
Estimated Range of Awards: $2,250,000--$3,000,000 for the
5-year project period.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $3,000,000 for the 5-year
project period.
Maximum Award: $3,000,000 for the 5-year project period. We
will not make an award exceeding $3,000,000 for the 5-year project period.
Cooperative Arrangement Development Grants:
Estimated Range of Awards: $3,000,000--$5,000,000 for the
5-year project period.
Estimated Average Size of Awards: $4,000,000 for the 5-year
project period.
Due to the uncertainty regarding appropriations in the
program in subsequent years, applicants are encouraged to structure projects to
maximize expenditures in year one of the grant and to ensure that year one
outcomes can stand alone. Cost sharing: This program does not require cost sharing or
matching unless the grantee uses a portion of its grant for establishing or
improving an endowment fund. Limited criteria: An eligible IHE may only submit one Individual
Development Grant (Individual) application and one Cooperative Arrangement
Development Grant (Coop) application.
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