Biden-Harris Administration Announces $40 Million to Expand Clean Energy Workforce Training and Enhance U.S. Building and Manufacturing Efficiency

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As part of the President’s Investing in America agenda and in conjunction with National Apprenticeship Week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the selection of 17 new Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) and the inaugural cohort of 10 Building Training and Assessment Centers (BTAC). Selectees are expected to receive a combined $40.8 million, made possible by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to expand training opportunities for in-demand, high-quality jobs while identifying opportunities for organizations to save energy, improve productivity, and reduce waste. Selectees will also work with hundreds of industrial facilities and buildings across more than 25 states and territories, expanding the existing network to 54 IACs and 10 BTACs. Aligned with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 commitment, over 75% of these awards will go to organizations that serve disadvantaged communities, help reduce energy burdens, and increase access to high-quality, good-paying jobs for Americans facing barriers to employment.

“America’s global leadership on advanced manufacturing and energy efficient buildings depends on our skilled, diverse workforce here at home,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, DOE is doing even more to invest in workers and small businesses, helping us meet our clean energy goals while creating high-quality, good-paying jobs in communities across the country.”

These new IACs and BTACs will deliver technical assistance and conduct assessments at small- and medium-sized manufacturer (SMMs) and commercial and institutional buildings. They will provide hands-on, engaging learning opportunities for students and union apprentices while identifying opportunities to reduce facility energy bills. Programs will also offer training and upskilling opportunities for current manufacturing and building energy workers. Participants will exit these programs prepared for high-quality, in-demand roles as building energy managers, insulators and heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration professionals, and as advanced manufacturing technicians for growing clean energy sectors like batteries and solar manufacturing.

These programs will broaden paths to clean energy careers that do not require a four-year degree. Seventeen of the 27 selected programs are based at community colleges, trade schools, and labor unions, including several apprenticeship programs. Selected institutions will provide mentorship networks, scholarships, job placement assistance, and other supports to serve diverse candidates, strengthen program completion rates, and place trainees into high-quality, good-paying green jobs. In total, 13 of the 27 selectees are federally recognized as serving an especially high percentage of students from minority groups (also known as Minority-Serving Institutions, or MSIs). As the Investing in America agenda boosts domestic manufacturing, enhances building performance, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, these new BTACs and IACs will play a crucial role in ensuring that all workers—and especially those facing barriers to employment—have the skills and opportunities to participate in the clean energy economy.

IAC Selectees

For more than four decades, the IAC Program has provided more than 20,000 assessments at SMMs, which comprise more than 90% of the nation’s manufacturing entities. These new IACs will expand the IAC model to more SMMs in more states and communities across the country, while training 3,000+ students and incumbent manufacturing workers for quality careers that do not necessarily require a four-year college degree.

The new IACs at community colleges, trade schools, and union training programs will expand pathways to green jobs for American workers. The selectees are:

• Arizona Western College (Yuma, Arizona)
• Atlanta Technical College (Atlanta, Georgia)
• BridgeValley Community & Technical College (Martinsburg, West Virginia, and South Charleston, West Virginia)
• Community College of Rhode Island (Warwick, Rhode Island)
• Illinois Community College Board (Springfield, Illinois, and additional locations across the state)
• Imperial Valley Community College District (Imperial, California)
• Insulation Industry International Apprentice and Training Fund (Phoenix, Arizona; Los Angeles, California; Wallingford, Connecticut; Miami, Florida; Omaha, Nebraska; Lanham, Maryland; Newark, New Jersey; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
• International Training Institute for the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Industry (Atlanta, Georgia, and Las Vegas, Nevada)
• Kern Community College District (Bakersfield, California)
• Miracosta Community College Technology Career Institute (Oceanside, California)
• Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (Gulfport, Mississippi)
• Mohawk Valley Community College (Utica, New York)
• Sinclair Community College (Dayton, Ohio)
• Southwest Wisconsin Technical College (Fennimore, Wisconsin, and additional locations across the state)
• Tri-Counties Sheet Metal Workers JATC (Ventura, California)
• Weber State University (Odgen, Utah)
• Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology (Wichita, Kansas)

Learn more about each of the selectees here.

BTAC Selectees

The new BTACs will build upon the existing IACs’ demonstrated successes in hands-on, real-world training. They will expand these benefits to commercial and institutional buildings across 26 states and territories to help them reduce energy bills and increase investment in environmental quality, employees, and surrounding communities.

Each BTAC will provide hands-on learning opportunities for students and in-depth assessments for building owners. The selectees are:

• Fayetteville State University (Fayetteville, North Carolina)
• Michigan State University (East Lansing, Michigan)
• New Mexico State University (Las Cruces, New Mexico)
• Syracuse University (Syracuse, New York)
• Texas Tech University (Lubbock, Texas)
• University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa, Alabama)
• University of Louisiana – Lafayette (Lafayette, Louisiana)
• University of Miami (Coral Gables, Florida)
• University of Washington (Seattle, Washington)
• University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)

Learn more about each of the selectees here.

DOE’s Continued Support for Clean Energy Training Programs and SMMs

In the coming months, the IAC Program will release additional opportunities to expand the network of IACs at community colleges, trade schools, and union training programs (including combined labor-management training programs). The next funding opportunity will be announced in early 2024. Subscribe to the DOE’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) newsletter to receive updates on future opportunities.

MESC manages the IAC Program, and the Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP) manages the BTAC Program.

Learn more about both programs by visiting the MESC and SCEP websites.