Years in the making and full of challenges, Workforce Pell could offer funding to more students and more programs.

But the key word above is “could.” This is a significant change in federal aid policy that is meant to broaden access to career and technical training, but questions remain around details, policies, implementation and data. 

Take a look at JFF’s rundown here. Okay, eligible institutions, short-term, recognized stackable credential, in-demand industries—sure, all of this is the kind of work community colleges and pre-apprenticeships have been doing for years. But keep scrolling down to these two bullets:

• Meets a completion rate of at least 70% within 150% of normal time to completion
• Meets a 70% job placement rate

If you’re like us, you know that completion rates of 70% for the people we want to serve can be challenging. Will that lead to cherry-picking the most capable students? And a 70% job placement rate? Sure, that’s a laudable goal, but again, does that change who is allowed to enroll, or encouraged to enroll? What if the economy tanks? And perhaps most challenging of all, how do we track those job placement rates? As soon as students graduate, many are hard to track. 

Here’s a telling bit from JFF’s FAQ at the bottom of that page: Unlike a regular Pell Grant, states will have a significant role in approving programs to be eligible for Workforce Pell. States will need to create an application process, establish written frameworks defining and assessing certain quality metrics, and provide a certification that each program meets such metrics. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) will then review that certification prior to full approval of a program. 

With that much power in the hands of state governments, and then the Department of Education, we can imagine a situation where programs take months for approval, and states, without the know-how or interest, take their time establishing those frameworks and providing certifications. 

Want honest insight into how to best implement Workforce Pell at your institution? Need a thought partner as you navigate your way through the coming thicket of challenges in getting a program off the ground? Get in touch via LinkedIn or email, jason at aspect works dot net.