Governor Greg Abbott today announced over $7 million in Texas Talent Connection grants to 27 innovative workforce skills training and job placement programs in communities across the state. These competitive grants administered by the Texas Workforce Investment Council in the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Office support innovative education and workforce skills training programs that lead to successful job placements, increased wages, and improved job retention, as well as serve workforce populations with special needs.

"The Texas economy soars to new heights because of the hard work and dedication of our young and skilled workforce," said Governor Abbott. "These grants will allow more Texans to acquire the skills they need to succeed in high-demand careers. As we train our future workforce, Texas will remain the economic engine of the country."

The $7,002,965 in Texas Talent Connection grant awards announced today include:

• American YouthWorks: $200,000 for year three of the YouthBuild: Pre-Apprenticeship for Opportunity Youth project in Bastrop, Blanco, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, and Williamson counties. The project provides pre-apprenticeship training for youth ages 16 to 24 who are not engaged in education or employment, work-based learning, registered apprenticeship, and postsecondary education and training at no cost to participants.
  
• Bay Area Houston Technology Consortium: $207,521 for year two of the High Demand Hidden Careers Connection Program in Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller counties. The program provides training in critical, high-demand occupations in medical research administration to underemployed individuals.
  
• Community Learning Centers, Inc.: $200,00 for year three of the Maintenance and Repair Technician Training project in Tarrant County. The project helps veterans, unemployed, underemployed, and those with low-income, low-skill backgrounds to acquire and master basic knowledge and skills to attain an entry-level maintenance and repair workers certification in multiple industry sectors.
  
• Del Mar College District: $340,811 for year one of the Building and Driving Texas Talent project in Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Duval, Jim Wells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, Nueces, Refugio, and San Patricio counties. This project aims to improve employment opportunities and credential attainment for individuals with limited education and low-skill attainment through industry-aligned training in transportation and construction trades.
  
• Goodwill Industries of Central Texas: $173,676 for year one of the Goodwill Career and Technical Academy – Medical Assistant project in Travis County. This project provides training for high-demand, entry-level medical assistant roles with clear career pathways for advancement, including progression to licensed vocational nurse.
  
• Houston's Capital IDEA, Inc.: $350,000 for year one of the Skilled Career Pathways: Dental, Trades, and Technical Careers project in Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto, and Waller counties. This project provides training, apprenticeship, and certification pathways in key growth sectors of dental assistants, dental hygienists, welding, HVAC mechanics and installers, electricians, and telecommunications installers.
  
• Houston City College: $177,210 for year one of the Pathways to Innovation: AI-Integrated Biotechnology Workforce Training project in Brazoria, Fort Bend, and Harris counties. This project will integrate artificial intelligence (AI) tools and technologies into Houston City College's Biotechnology Laboratory Sciences Level 1 Certificate program to equip students with dual competencies of foundational laboratory sciences skills and applied AI literacy in a scientific research context.
  
• Lamar State College Port Arthur: $350,000 for year one of the A Focus on Transportation project in Chambers, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Newton, and Orange counties. The project will create a new ship-fitting apprenticeship to address a need for ship-fitters in the Southeast Texas region to construct military ice-breaking vessels.
  
• Lone Star College Houston North: $188,000 for year one of the Bridging Talent to Industry: Welding Career Pathways and Student Success project in Harris County. This project will provide career guidance and increase access to the high-demand field of welding technology, collaborating with industry-aligned partners to ensure high-quality training, credential attainment, and job placement.
  
• My Possibilities: $200,000 for year three of the Employment Innovation School project serving Collin, Dallas, Denton, Rockwall, and Tarrant counties. The project will provide hands-on vocational training and certification in the retail, culinary arts, hospitality, technology, administration, and facilities industries for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
  
• North Texas Electrical Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee: $350,000 for year one of the North Texas Electrical Apprenticeship Navigator and Apprenticeship Bootcamp project in Collin, Comanche, Cooke, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Erath, Fannin, Grayson, Hood, Hunt, Jack, Johnson, Kaufman, Navarro, Palo Pinto, Parker, Rockwall, Somervell, Tarrant and Wise counties. This project aims to strengthen the electrician apprenticeship pipeline.
  
• Per Scholas, Inc.: $200,000 for year three of the Creating Economic Mobility and Robust Futures Through Information Technology Training project serving Collin, Dallas, Denton, Fort Bend, Harris, Houston, and Tarrant counties. The project provides technical skill training for job opportunities such as help desk analysts, desktop support technicians, and associate network engineers in the information technology industry.
  
• Project ARRIBA: $200,000 for year three of Educare: Elevating Nursing and Education in El Paso project, serving El Paso County. The project provides training for underserved/at-risk individuals and helps participants succeed in postsecondary education to secure employment in the high-demand occupations of nursing, education and healthcare.
  
• Restore Education: $200,000 for year three of Opportunity Youth Job Training to Success project serving Bexar, Frio, Gillespie, Karnes, Kendall, McMullen, Medina, and Wilson counties. The project provides training in the form of paid work experience or internship to Opportunity Youth, foster youth, and justice-involved youth to help secure certifications and employment for in-demand career opportunities in customer service, bookkeeping, pharmacy tech, phlebotomy and transportation.
  
• Rural Capital Area Workforce Development Board, Inc.: $236,709 for year two of the Rural Pre-Nursing Readiness and Education Program (PREP) project serving Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, Llano, and Williamson counties. This program addresses critical healthcare shortages and builds upon existing employer partnerships to create accessible career pathways for underserved rural residents in licensed vocational, registered and Bachelor of Science Nursing programs.
  
• SER-Jobs for Progress of the Texas Gulf Coast, Inc.: $350,000 for year one of the Foundation for the Future: Texas Skilled Trades Initiative in Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, and Wharton counties. This program provides low-income and underemployed individuals with training and job placement supported by employers in construction and skilled trades.
  
• Skillpoint Alliance: $200,000 for year one of the Skillpoint IGNITE project in Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, Llano, Travis, and Williamson counties. This project provides training and guidance for students transitioning from an electrical pre-apprenticeship to a registered apprenticeship program.
  
• Smithville Workforce Training Center: $350,000 for year one of the Auto Works Technician Program in Rural Texas project in Bastrop, Caldwell, Fayette, and Lee counties. This program provides automotive technician training, expands access to industry-recognized credentials, and creates a pipeline of skilled workers for employers, including automotive dealerships and mechanics.
  
• South Texas College: $167,834 for year one of the Construction and EKG Career Pathways project in Hidalgo and Starr counties. This project launches two new short-term certification programs for construction trade workers and electrocardiography (EKG) technicians.
  
• Texas A&M Engineering Experimentation Station: $349,991 for year one of the TRIBEC Advanced Industry-focused Biomanufacturing (TRAINBio) project in Brazos, Collin, and Dallas counties. This project provides intensive, hands-on capstone training in biomanufacturing at the National Center for Therapeutics Manufacturing facilities.
  
• Texas Premier Technology Institute: $250,000 for year two of TechBridge DFW: AI-Enabled IT Support Accelerator program serving Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, and Tarrant counties. This program prepares underserved individuals, including veterans, unemployed, and disadvantaged youth, for entry-level technical jobs in IT support, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence.
  
• Texas State Technical College: $266,252 for year one of the Production Technician Workforce Pathway in Bosque, Falls, Freestone, Hill, Limestone, and McLennan counties. The program will prepare adults 18 and older for entry-level employment in the regional manufacturing sector.
  
• Texas Tech University: $350,000 for year one of the Building Professionals Training for the South Plains and Panhandle Region project in Armstrong, Bailey, Carson, Cochran, Crosby, Dickens, Floyd, Garza, Hale, Hockley, King, Lamb, Lubbock, Lynn, Motley, Oldham, Potter, Randall, Terry, and Yoakum counties. This project provides utilities training for individuals in commercial and industrial building management, namely energy efficiency and optimization.
  
• United College and Career Success: $250,000 for year one of the Leap Forward Workforce Innovation Program project in Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, and Wharton counties. This grant provides training for opportunity youth and young adults ages 16 to 24 to become phlebotomists, medical assistants, and nursing assistants using predictive methods to identify disengagement risk and enable real-time intervention to ensure credential completion.
  
• University of Houston Downtown (UHD): $344,961 for year one of the UHD Bridging Entry into the STEM Workforce project in Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto, Walker, and Waller counties. This project provides foundational training in laboratory skills to improve workforce readiness and increase successful transition rates into the workforce.
  
• Valley Initiative for Development and Advancement: $200,000 for year three of the Rio Grande Valley Healthcare Professional Expansion Initiative project serving residents in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willacy counties. This project provides training for certification and employment in high-demand careers in healthcare support, licensed practical and vocational nursing, registered nurses, therapists, and health technologists and technicians.
  
• Workforce Solutions of Central Texas: $350,000 for year one of the WorkForce Talent Pipeline project in Bell, Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, Milam, Mills, and San Saba counties. This program provides training in advanced manufacturing, semiconductor technology, robotics, industrial maintenance, and skilled trades.

The Texas Workforce Investment Council assists the Governor and the legislature with strategic planning for and evaluation of the Texas workforce system to promote the development of a well-educated, highly skilled workforce for Texas. The Council's appointed members represent workforce system partners and stakeholders, including business and industry, organized labor, education, and community-based organizations. Ex officio members include the Texas Workforce Commission, Texas Education Agency, Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, and the Governor's Economic Development and Tourism Office. The more than $7 million in Texas Talent Connection grants awarded this year by Governor Abbott are Wagner-Peyser 7(b) grant funds allocated to the Office of the Governor by the U.S. Department of Labor to encourage innovation in workforce training and job placement services.

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Read more about the Texas Talent Connection grant program at: https://gov.texas.gov/organization/twic/wagner_peyser_7b_program

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