Governor Abbott Announces Over $2.2 Million In Career Training Grants To Tarrant County Schools
Governor Greg Abbott today announced five Jobs and Education for Texans (JET) grants totaling more than $2.2 million have been awarded to two schools in Tarrant County by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). The JET grants will support career and technical education (CTE) training programs by helping the schools purchase and install equipment to initially train over 1,500 students for high-demand occupations as registered nurses, welders, automotive service technicians, electricians, and more.
"Career and technical education training programs are critical to building the workforce for the Texas of tomorrow," said Governor Abbott. "As our state and economy continues to grow, so does our need for highly skilled professionals across a variety of industries. I thank the Texas Workforce Commission for their work to build partnerships like these in Tarrant County as we help prepare Texas students for good-paying, high-demand careers."
"These JET grants will help train thousands of students for long-term careers in multiple industries in this fast-growing region," said TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel. "The CTE programs provided by Tarrant County schools upskill their local workforce with critical skills that will contribute to the continued success of the Texas economy."
Earlier today, TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel presented the awards at a ceremony attended by state and local officials, school staff, and CTE students at Tarrant County College.
The five JET grants include:
- Arlington Independent School District (ISD):
- a $347,933 grant to train 700 students as registered nurses in partnership with Tarrant County College.
- a $115,310 grant to train 150 students as automotive service technicians in partnership with Tarrant County College.
- Keller ISD:
- a $677,849 grant to train 362 students as welders in partnership with Tarrant County College.
- a $651,852 grant to train 174 students as HVAC mechanics in partnership with Tarrant County College.
- a $410,584 grant to train 179 students as electricians in partnership with Tarrant County College.
Through funding provided by the Texas Legislature each biennium, TWC uses JET grants to defray start-up costs to develop career and technical education programs for the public community, state and technical colleges, school districts, and charter schools. Equipment funded through JET grants must be used to train students for jobs in high-demand occupations.