Texas is pouring more than $20 million into classrooms and shop floors across the state, funding 84 grants that officials say will equip career and technical education programs to train over 7,400 students in their first year alone. Governor Greg Abbott announced the awards Monday, with public junior colleges, state colleges, technical colleges, school districts and open-enrollment charter schools among the recipients.
amplified the governor's announcement, which detailed how the Jobs and Education for Texans, or JET, grants will help schools purchase equipment for career and technical training programs. According to the
Office of the Governor of Texas
, individual awards announced Monday included $375,000 for Northwest Vista College, part of Alamo Colleges, to train 300 data scientists, $355,686 for College of the Mainland to train 146 registered nurses, and $346,697 for Collin College to train 120 welders.
A Southeast Texas MOU Partner
In Southeast Texas, Leggett ISD was listed as an LSCO MOU partner.
JET grants help schools purchase career and technical education equipment.
A Separate Regional Announcement
The Texas Workforce Commission separately reported that Abbott and the agency announced more than $1.3 million for four West Central Texas institutions to train 356 students.
The current set of 84 JET grants totals more than $20 million.
Eligible Applicants
JET eligibility includes the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and probation departments.
Hoodline has previously covered JET awards reaching individual Texas communities, including a $142,000 grant to Vernon College. Monday's announcement folds those kinds of local wins into a much larger statewide tally, though questions remain about how districts will sustain instructor staffing and track long-term job placement for the thousands of students the new equipment is meant to train.
