Oregon Awarded $5.8 Million in Federal Grants to Support Registered Apprenticeships
The grants from the U.S. Department of Labor will support apprenticeship pathways in education and behavioral health
Salem, Oregon | The Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC) is pleased to announce that Oregon has been awarded a total of approximately $5.8 million in federal grants from the United States Department of Labor (DOL) through the State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula 3 (SAEF 3) Grant. With this funding, the HECC will support expanding registered apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship opportunities in early learning and care, K-12 education, and behavioral health careers. This funding will support creating innovative, new registered apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs and scaling up established programs.
Registered apprenticeships combine structured, paid, on-the-job learning experiences with related classroom instruction to train individuals to high industry-recognized standards. In Oregon, numerous partners work together to provide Oregonians with registered apprenticeship opportunities, including state agencies, local workforce development boards, labor unions, postsecondary education and training providers, and employers. Registered apprenticeships are currently available for a wide range of occupations in Oregon, from certified nursing assistants to electricians. The DOL grant expands registered apprenticeships in high-demand careers in early learning and care, K-12 education, and behavioral health in response to critical workforce shortages.
Julia Pontoni, director of workforce investments for the HECC, says, “We’re excited to expand registered apprenticeships in education and health care fields where Oregon is facing critical shortages. This is a win-win for Oregon job-seekers and their communities. The registered apprenticeship model allows Oregonians to work and receive high-quality training at the same time, and to prepare for high-demand professions that directly serve their communities.”
The majority of the funds will support expansion of established programs through partnering agencies, workforce boards, and community organizations. The HECC will establish agreements for the following awards:
- Approximately $3 million in sub-awards to Oregon’s Teacher Standards and Practices Commission, through an interagency agreement, to increase opportunities in its Oregon Teaching Apprenticeship, a program that helps prospective teachers across the state earn their Oregon Preliminary Teaching License;
- $900,000 in sub-awards to Northwest Oregon Works and United We Heal to expand their behavioral health offerings, including behavioral health registered apprenticeships that train certified drug and alcohol counselors and qualified mental health associates;
- $800,000 in sub-awards to Southwestern Oregon Workforce Investment Board and Mid-Willamette Valley Child Care Resource & Referral to expand their child development specialist and early childhood educator registered apprenticeships, respectively;
- $85,000 to the Bureau of Labor and Industries to improve resources for Oregonians on apprenticeships, such as the OregonApprenticeship.org website and application processes; and
- $50,000 in a sub-award to Worksystems to support incorporation of registered apprenticeship opportunities into their Quality Jobs Initiative.
In the coming months, the HECC will issue a Request for Applications (RFA) for a total of $750,000 in funding for the development of new Oregon Registered Apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs focused on behavioral health and early childhood education. Partners can look for this opportunity on our Grant and Contract Opportunities web page where it will be announced.
The federal grants support research-identified workforce needs. The HECC recently commissioned and published an assessment of behavioral health industry workforce needs in Oregon, which highlighted significant statewide shortages of trained behavioral health professionals. For example, it showed that 32 of Oregon's 36 counties lack even one behavioral health provider per 1,000 residents. In K-12 education, according to the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission’s educator dashboard, more than 1,800 K-12 educator positions remain unfilled for the 2025-26 school year. In early learning, nearly one half of all early learning and care providers experience staff shortages according to a report made to the Department of Early Learning and Care. The Oregon Employment Department projects significant growing demand for workers in behavioral health and in early care and learning between 2023-2033.
Learn More:
The HECC’s Office of Workforce Investments (OWI) convenes statewide partnerships and leads strategies and initiatives across the workforce system. The Bureau of Labor and Industries Apprenticeship and Training Division registers and supports apprenticeship programs in Oregon. HECC’s Office of Community Colleges and Workforce Development (CCWD) collaborates with Oregon's 17 community colleges and other partners on program and course approval for registered apprenticeship offerings. Learn more on the Workforce and Talent Development Board’s Resources for Workers, and Oregon Apprenticeship.
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