Narrative: b. 2.

Colorado recognizes that Registered Apprenticeships (RAs) are an important component of potential training and employment services that the workforce system can provide to its business customers and job seekers. RAs are a key component within a spectrum of work-based learning activities that are used to create opportunity for both industry and job seekers in Colorado. Local service providers will be expected to utilize RAs as a career pathway program for job seekers and as a job-driven strategy for employers and industries. Regional and local plans will address the inclusion of RAs in sector strategies and ensure that RAs are an integral part of the work based learning options that WIOA customers may access. The State Apprenticeship Agency will provide training, technical assistance and access to USDOL’s RA resources to encourage and foster the use of existing programs, as well as the development of new RAs. Local workforce boards are expected to develop local policies and procedures to implement RAs, which may include the use of pre-apprenticeships, Individual Training Accounts and On-the-Job Training awards to customers who wish to start an apprenticeship. 

Central to this strategy of creating industry-led opportunity is the work done under the discretionary federal apprenticeship grants. Since 2016, CDLE has received $14.7M in federal funds to expand registered apprenticeship across the state. The purpose of these grants is to strengthen RA efforts by expanding the industry sectors and range of occupations involved and increasing access to RAs for more diverse and underrepresented populations. This work is aimed at fundamentally changing the way Colorado’s workforce and educational systems approach employment and training for youth and adults. RAs allow employers to design programs with specific skills, training and job-related instruction tailored to the company’s needs and are considered the “gold standard” for apprenticeship training in the United States. Statewide, 82  new and expanded RA programs have been created and 1,782 apprentices placed in new and existing apprenticeship programs through partnerships and opportunities fostered through this grant. 

Colorado Department of Labor and Employment secured a $10M grant, referred to as the Innovation, Diversity, and Equity in Apprenticeship (IDEA) grant, to further invest in a high-quality registered apprenticeship system, prioritizing an equitable recovery. In addition to increasing career pathways for Coloradans, IDEA grant funds are central to building capacity to integrate Registered Apprenticeship as a core function of the public workforce system. Distinguishing factors of the award include a comprehensive diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in apprenticeship plan, sector-based strategies to expand apprenticeships to innovative industries, and leveraging the Apprenticeship Hub Model to ensure an equity-driven recruitment strategy. CDLE collaborated with state and local partners and industry representatives in the crafting of the proposal. These funds will allow our state to build back better, ensuring that there are clear pathways to high quality careers for all Coloradans as our economy reopens. CDLE is proud to lead the state in implementing a high quality registered apprenticeship system.