Governing Workforce Pell Grants at the State Level
Shytance Wren
February 24, 2026
Last summer, the H.B. 1 was passed by the U.S. Congress. This legislation allows students to apply Pell Grants to short-term training programs beginning July 1, 2026, which could open up myriad new workforce opportunities for students from low-income backgrounds. However, the way states implement this new application of Pell Grants will be influenced by its existing higher education governance structure. There are four governance typologies (i.e., centralized, coordinated, split authority and decentralized), which all have differences that shape how states prepare to scale Workforce Pell Grants.
Centralized Governance Systems
In centralized governance systems, a statewide board or system office exercises direct authority over community college and technical education programming, funding and accountability. System offices typically establish common approval processes, reporting templates and compliance standards that apply across institutions. Some states that use this structure include Hawaiʻi, Nevada and Rhode Island.
