LITTLE ROCK, Ark — The Arkansas Department of Education has received a $1.1 million grant from the Biden-Harris Administration.
The administration announced that the grant is in part with its "Career Connected High Schools (CCHS) grant program."
The CCHS totals $25M and brings grants to multiple states around the country including Arkansas, Florida, Wisconsin, Georgia, and several others.
With the receival of the grant, Arkansas becomes just one of only 19 total recipients selected for the grant program.
According to a press release from the US Department of Education, the grant "builds the capacity of education and workforce systems to partner with business and industry [which develops] new high-quality career-connected high school programs for more students."
Each recipient had to demonstrate what's being described as "four evidence-based strategies" that works to help students develop career success. The US Department of Education listed the aforementioned strategies as follows:
- Providing postsecondary education and career guidance
- Increasing access to dual or concurrent enrollment programs
- Increasing work-based learning opportunities
- Providing industry-recognized credentials.
“President Biden understands that it’s time to invest in career-connected learning that will better prepare our young people for exciting careers and family-sustaining jobs in today’s most in-demand fields,” US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a press release.
This grant is part of a program from the US Department of Education called "Raise the Bar: Unlocking Career Success." This program looks to increase the access that young Americans have to "good-paying jobs."
The US Department of Education said that they received over 160 eligible applications from 43 states and the District of Columbia.