Funding Available for Skilled Trades Training Programs

Home builders associations and NAHB members can help create or enhance construction trades programs at their local middle and high schools by encouraging school leaders to apply for the Schools to Skills grant, supported by the Home Builders Institute (HBI).

The Schools to Skills grant program, funded by The Home Depot Foundation (THDF) and the National Housing Endowment (NHE), allows schools to launch or enhance career technical education programs using HBI’s nationally recognized Pre-Apprenticeship Certificate Training (PACT) curriculum. PACT is one of only three national curricula recognized and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor and many state departments of education. The curriculum is also supported and endorsed by NAHB.

PACT is a hands-on, competency-based curriculum. It aligns with the STEM educational model — a curriculum based on discipline areas increasingly prominent in the modern workforce, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics. HBI will work closely with school administrators and instructors to implement a skilled trades training program and provide industry-recognized certifications to middle and high school students.

Interested educators and school administrators can view a short on-demand HBI 2023 Schools to Skills pre-application webinar explaining the program and its benefits. (Registration not required.)

Applications are due Friday, Dec. 16, 2022, and schools are encouraged to apply now. Contact partnerships@hbi.org for more information.