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Program / Good Jobs
EDA Good Jobs Challenge
A competitive American Rescue Plan grant from the Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration to build regional, employer-led workforce training systems. VerisGov maps the structure and keeps the moving parts current.
At a glance
- Program
- Good Jobs Challenge, a competitive grant to build regional, employer-led workforce training systems.
- Administering agency
- U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration.
- Statutory authority
- Funded under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a one-time appropriation, administered under EDA's economic development authorities.
- Funding mechanism
- One-time competitive grants awarded through a national notice of funding opportunity, not an annual formula program.
- Money flow
- Commerce and EDA award funds to a lead applicant, a system lead or sectoral partnership backbone organization, that coordinates the regional system and its partners.
- Who has a stake
- State and local governments, Tribes, nonprofits, educational and training providers, community-based organizations, labor organizations, and employers.
What it is
The Good Jobs Challenge was a competitive grant program run by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration to build and strengthen regional workforce training systems that connect workers to quality jobs. It was funded as one of the Economic Development Administration's American Rescue Plan investments, the law enacted in 2021 to support pandemic recovery.
The program's design centered on sector partnerships: industry-led, worker-centered collaboratives in which employers, training providers, community organizations, and the public workforce system jointly identify in-demand skills and build the training pipelines to fill them. EDA awarded funds to a lead entity that coordinated the regional system and its partners. Because it was a one-time American Rescue Plan appropriation awarded through a single national competition, the Good Jobs Challenge is best understood as a model and a precedent rather than a recurring annual program.
The competition was substantially oversubscribed, with hundreds of applicants competing for a limited pool of awards. That makes the Good Jobs Challenge a useful template for how the Economic Development Administration structures employer-led workforce investments, and a guide to what a strong sector-partnership application looks like if similar competitions are funded in the future.
Key facts
- Program Good Jobs Challenge, a competitive grant to build regional, employer-led workforce training systems.
- Administering agency U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration.
- Statutory authority Funded under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a one-time appropriation, administered under EDA's economic development authorities.
- Funding mechanism One-time competitive grants awarded through a national notice of funding opportunity, not an annual formula program.
- Money flow Commerce and EDA award funds to a lead applicant, a system lead or sectoral partnership backbone organization, that coordinates the regional system and its partners.
- Who has a stake State and local governments, Tribes, nonprofits, educational and training providers, community-based organizations, labor organizations, and employers.
What it funds
- Establishing or expanding regional workforce training systems made up of multiple sector partnerships
- Building sector-based training curriculum, materials, and partnerships in targeted industries
- Connecting workers to quality jobs, including wrap-around support services
- Coordination and backbone capacity for the lead entity and its partner network
Always current
What VerisGov keeps current
The facts above hold for years. These move, and they are where most of the work is. The engine tracks each one against its government source, so what you see is the live state, not a snapshot that quietly went out of date.
- Whether any new Good Jobs Challenge or successor competition is open and its deadlines
- Status of awards from the original American Rescue Plan round
- Current EDA notices of funding opportunity for workforce-related programs
- Any program-design or eligibility changes in future competitions
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Pinned to records published by
- U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration
- Regional system-lead and backbone organizations
Answers
Frequently asked questions
Is the Good Jobs Challenge an annual program?
No. It was funded as a one-time American Rescue Plan investment awarded through a single national competition. It is a competitive program, not a recurring formula grant, so future rounds depend on new appropriations and competitions.
Who administers it?
The U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration, the federal agency focused on regional economic growth, which is why it framed the program around regional workforce systems.
Who could apply?
A lead applicant such as a regional system lead or a sectoral partnership backbone organization. Eligible entities included state and local governments, Tribes, and nonprofit organizations, working with employers, educational institutions, and community partners.
How does VerisGov help with the Good Jobs Challenge?
VerisGov maps the durable structure, the EDA role, the sector-partnership model, and the competitive award mechanism, and keeps the volatile details current: whether a new competition is open, the status of prior awards, and current EDA workforce funding opportunities. Every fact is pinned to its source.
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