Five Texas Colleges Can Now Use Pell Grants for Short-Term Job Training
Kilgore, Weatherford, Central Texas, Texas Southmost and San Jacinto are among the first in the nation approved for Workforce Pell, which pays for programs as short as eight weeks.
For the first time, low-income Texans can use federal Pell Grants to pay for short-term job training instead of a traditional degree. Five Texas community colleges have been approved by the U.S. Department of Education to accept the new Workforce Pell grants, The Texas Tribune reported on Oct. 13.
The Education Department approved the first six Texas programs, at Kilgore and Weatherford, on Sept. 22, and Gov. Greg Abbott announced Oct. 2 that five colleges now have nine approved programs. Abbott also announced a $10.4 million U.S. Department of Labor grant to a consortium led by the Alamo Colleges District to strengthen Workforce Pell-eligible programs.
Texas joins Iowa, Indiana and Nebraska among the first states with short-term programs approved for the money.
Where the money can go
The approved programs are aimed at jobs Texas employers are short on:
Kilgore College in East Texas: electrical power lineman, phlebotomy technician and pharmacy technician.
Weatherford College in North Texas: HVAC, basic machining and advanced machining.
Central Texas College: pharmacy technician. Texas Southmost College: structural welding. San Jacinto College: phlebotomy technician.
Federal officials will keep approving more schools on a rolling basis. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board asked federal officials to consider at least 12 programs after Workforce Pell took effect in July, deputy commissioner David Troutman told a House committee in August.
How it works
Pell Grants do not have to be repaid and typically go to families earning less than about $50,000 a year. At least one in three Texas college students has relied on them for more than a decade. Until now, the grants were largely reserved for degree programs.
Federal legislation President Donald Trump signed in 2025 expanded Pell to cover workforce programs as short as eight weeks. To qualify, a program must be in a high-demand, high-wage field, and at least 70 percent of students must finish and at least 70 percent must land jobs within six months. Students apply through the regular federal financial aid form. The Education Department estimates an average award of about $1,700.
Weatherford College President Tod Allen Farmer called it a turning point.
"This was a true game changer in higher education. It's going to allow a whole new group of citizens access to higher education that have never been able to afford it before."
Farmer said he expects the number of Weatherford programs eligible for the grants to grow.
Why it matters for Texas business
For years, many young people have heard that a four-year degree is the only respectable path, while contractors, utilities and hospitals look for linemen, welders, HVAC techs and phlebotomists. A welding certificate that leads to a paycheck in a few months can do more for a young family than a degree that leads to years of debt.
The 70 percent completion and job-placement rules matter, too. Taxpayer money should follow results, and these requirements tie the grants to programs that actually put people to work. Honest work is a calling, not a consolation prize, and this change finally treats it that way.
Students interested in the programs should start with the federal financial aid form and contact the college's financial aid office directly to confirm which programs qualify.
Hero photo: Weatherford College Education Center at Mineral Wells by Larry D. Moore via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY 4.0; cropped and resized.
