Workforce Pell Year One: How States Can Use the First Year of Implementation to Pilot, Self-Assess, Continuously Improve, and Scale

When Workforce Pell became policy on July 1, the ground didn’t shake. Across the country, no programs were fully approved, and no students were enrolled. Like so many policies, the impact of Workforce Pell will be felt through effective implementation. Workforce Pell’s potential to expand access to opportunity will only be realized if states implement the policy thoughtfully and ambitiously. 

As of this writing, states are taking a wide range of approaches to prioritizing occupations that align with the policy’s requirements and reflect their local contexts. And states across the country are reporting a limited set of credential programs expected to qualify initially. For example, the North Carolina Community College system recently estimated that fewer than one percent of programs (330 of the 50,000 short-term programs offered at community colleges last year) will meet Workforce Pell eligibility and accountability standards. 

Currently, states are focused on compliance with their processes and the programs they approve. But a greater opportunity lies in using Workforce Pell strategically to grow programs aligned with each governor’s workforce vision. To do this, states need to implement ambitious processes to support the growth of high-quality programs during the foundational first year, use coalitions and data to drive continuous improvement, and align Workforce Pell with other workforce efforts. 

Treating the first year as a pilot with a small number of approved programs can drive strong enrollment and workforce outcomes in the years to come, if the time is used intentionally and methodically to test, self-assess, and improve. Informed by our work with states developing their Workforce Pell policies over the past several months, we see the following steps as key to that ambitious approach that drives positive outcomes quickly. 

The data collected for federal eligibility should be used to show which programs place graduates in good jobs and identify which occupational pipelines are worth strengthening. Workforce Pell champions, ranging from community college administrators to local employers to state legislators, can help operationalize opportunities for improvement identified in the data. 

• Sustain and reinvigorate your existing coalition: Committees or working groups formed to advise on and craft the initial Workforce Pell policy will remain the best sounding board during implementation. Keeping this group active serves two purposes: tracking implementation progress and sustaining cross-agency relationships across education and workforce development. 
• Set program and enrollment targets and conduct an internal quarterly review: Using data from similar state program rollouts, have the working group set targets (such as programs approved or students enrolled in approved programs) for Workforce Pell. Review Workforce Pell implementation data and track program performance against targets. Then, identify and begin addressing gaps in programming, such as regions of the state without representation or mismatches between programs and labor market trends. 
• Engage employers to pressure-test your labor market data: Of course, quarterly reviews may reveal shortcomings in the labor market data. Engaging regularly with employers can help confirm real-time labor market needs and ensure that state data reflects what employers are seeing on the ground. This can be done through an existing channel, such as an industry talent association, a workforce board survey, a community college employer advisory board, or a chamber of commerce. 
• Plan for program reapproval: Workforce Pell programs must be reapproved to retain eligibility. Treating these approvals as routine will require building them into longer-term planning. Early on, map every recertification deadline and work backward from it so nothing sneaks up on your state government. In line with WIOA planning, states are expected to assess their definitions for high-skilled, high-wage, and in-demand every two years. 
• Build out enhanced wage records: The US Department of Education will require that job placement rates for Workforce Pell programs be in the occupation for which the graduate was trained by the 2029-30 award year. Most states do not collect occupational information on their unemployment wage records. States need to start working on this now because it is a significant political and technical lift to implement. Ensure that the working group includes the people who run the state unemployment insurance wage system to get a clear sense of what it will take to accomplish this.

States should actively manage the portfolio of Workforce Pell-eligible programs to align with their workforce and economic development goals, in collaboration with colleges across their states.

• Actively manage the state’s portfolio: It’s worth treating the approved programs list as a portfolio to be managed and grown. That includes retiring programs that aren’t delivering for students or the labor market. Bringing employers into the review gives you an early read on where skills needs are shifting or which occupations might be vulnerable to automation. Managing the mix actively and being willing to let weak programs go is what keeps the whole portfolio strong. 
• Provide technical support to colleges for new or updated programs: With the active management of the state’s portfolio comes the need to support colleges in creating new programs that meet the state’s workforce needs. States can partner with technical assistance providers or provide support themselves to help colleges develop programs that meet Workforce Pell requirements and state needs.
• Partner with colleges to raise student awareness of Workforce Pell programs: The expansion of Pell grants for short, workforce-oriented courses is a new use that eligible students will need to understand. Colleges can use existing channels and trusted messengers, such as guidance counselors and career centers, to inform students about these changes. 
• Be accessible to colleges as they troubleshoot program eligibility: Create open channels for the state to address colleges’ questions, through hotlines, office hours, feedback sessions, and thorough Q&A pages. Understand the types of support available to providers seeking to build their own reporting capacity, whether through the community college network or national organizations such as Data Quality Campaign.

Workforce Pell can align state government, bringing together higher education, workforce development, and economic development.

• Connect Workforce Pell with statewide initiatives: Workforce Pell can support existing statewide workforce strategies. Stitching together Workforce Pell with other state initiatives to incentivize growth in particular sectors or occupations, such as Minnesota’s approach to include its Drive for 5 priority occupations, allows states to build on existing programs for greater impact. This will also boost awareness as additional stakeholders connect students to programming.
• Align current state financial aid programs with Workforce Pell Requirements: Existing state aid programs that fund similar programs can extend the reach of Workforce Pell, but only if the requirements are aligned. Workforce Pell reaches only a narrow slice of programs and students, and likely won’t cover the full cost of many programs, leaving gaps that state aid should fill. 

As states steer the program, honest self-assessment and reflection will help uncover missed opportunities, such as suitable programs whose providers did not apply due to administrative hurdles, as well as opportunities to streamline state processes and the user experience for both institutions and students. Consider using a structure or a very simple template like this with the working group to self-assess at the end of each year. 

Workforce Pell will only have as much impact as effective implementation of the policy allows. With the right mindset and approach in state governments steering it to fruition and shaping its reality and reach, the policy might just live up to its lofty promise of expanding access to training, opportunity, and economic mobility across the country.