Gov. Reynolds, Iowa Department of Education award $2 million to expand career academy opportunities

Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Education today awarded $2 million in grants to Ellsworth Community College and Iowa Western Community College through the state’s Career Academy Incentive Fund. The grant funds will be used to establish two new regional centers, empowering more Iowa students with multiple pathways to postsecondary success.

The Career Academy Incentive Fund, spearheaded by Gov. Reynolds in 2019 and administered by the Iowa Department of Education, creates and supports partnerships among community colleges, schools, local businesses and community stakeholders. The new regional centers at Ellsworth Community College in the Iowa Valley Community College District and the main campus of Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs will serve students from 11 school districts and two nonpublic schools providing access to 11 career academy programs.

“When students have more opportunities to explore careers, earn credentials and gain real world experience while they’re still in high school, we build the next generation of workforce leaders in our communities,” Gov. Reynolds said. “Iowa continues to invest in its future through the Career Academy Incentive Fund. These new career academies will prepare more students for high-skill, high-demand and high-wage jobs, while meeting the workforce needs of Iowa employers.”

A regional center must provide access to at least four career academy programs and serve either a combined minimum of 120 students from at least two school districts or a minimum of four school districts. Career academies link secondary career and technical education (CTE) to a postsecondary education program through concurrent enrollment and coursework that provides a foundation to pursue a postsecondary credential of value.

“Career-connected learning is changing lives, empowering communities and strengthening economies,” said Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow. “Through the hard work of our students, educators and employers, more Iowa learners are attaining work-based learning experiences and college credit while in high school than ever before. These regional career academies expand access to in-demand, resource-intensive programs, and we are proud to partner with our education and industry leaders in connecting the classroom to high-wage, high-skill careers across Iowa.”

Work-based learning participation in Iowa has reached a record high, with 45% of Iowa high school seniors in the class of 2025 completing at least one work-based learning experience. This marks a significant increase from 31.7% in 2024 and 25.5% in 2023, reflecting a nearly 20 percentage point rise in student attainment and a rate of increase of 76% over the past two years.

To further increase access to career academy programs in high-demand fields through new or expanded career academies and regional centers, both Ellsworth Community College and Iowa Western Community College will each receive $1 million through the Career Academy Incentive Fund.

• Ellsworth Community College will use the funds to create a new regional center by remodeling and renovating existing lab facilities and classrooms, and constructing new facilities to support the career academies. The site will host career academies in construction technology, agricultural science, welding and entrepreneurship. Located in the northern and most rural portion of the Iowa Valley Community College District, it will expand access to CTE coursework for students in the Iowa Falls-Alden, AGWSR, BCLUW and Eldora-New Providence Community School Districts.
• Iowa Western Community College will use its grant to establish a new regional center at its Transportation and Logistics Center. The regional center will expand CTE opportunities to students in seven school districts with career academies in welding, construction management, plumbing technology, HVAC/R maintenance, electronics and industrial systems, diesel maintenance and automotive maintenance. The regional center will serve students in the Council Bluffs, Lewis Central, Treynor, Riverside and Underwood Community School Districts, as well as Heartland Christian School and St. Albert Catholic School.

Established in 2019, the Career Academy Incentive Fund is supported by a statewide penny sales tax for school infrastructure, called Secure an Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE). The Iowa Department of Education may award up to $5 million in competitive grants annually, operating up to two competitions each year.

Additional information can be found on the Department’s Career Academy Incentive Fund webpage.