Background & Information
The
U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL)
Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is charged with
contributing to the more efficient functioning of the U.S. labor market. ETA meets this goal by
providing employment services, labor market information, job training, and income maintenance
services. Most of ETA’s funding is distributed to state and local workforce development agencies
by statutory or regulatory formula that is not open for competition. However, ETA also awards a
significant portion of funding through competitive grants to support a variety of priorities in
employment and training programming and services. These opportunities are announced through formal
Solicitations for Grant Applications (SGAs), which are published in the
Federal Register,
on
ETA’s
Grants and Contracts Web site, and on the
Grants.gov Web site.
ETA is committed to ensuring that as many entities as possible – in particular, smaller entities
such as community-based and faith-based groups, as well as those entities that have not previously
managed Federal grant programs — are aware of competitive grant application opportunities. ETA does
not encourage the submission of concept papers, abstracts, or other unsolicited proposals, as all
discretionary grant opportunities to date are conducted through a competitive process. Recognizing
that smaller community organizations and entities that are “new” to the Federal grant-making
process may be unfamiliar with ETA SGAs and with ETA’s process for evaluating grant applications,
ETA has developed several tools to help new organizations craft competitive applications. This Web
site is a central clearinghouse for these tools, and will be updated with additional tools as they
are published.
Tools for Prospective Applicants Include:
An interactive, self-paced Web guide on ETA’s grant-making process, designed specifically for small community organizations and
first-time applicants for ETA funding. The guide addresses ETA’s grant-making mission; its funding priorities; the Agency’s grant application solicitation and evaluation processes; and “how-to” guidance on crafting responsive and potentially competitive grant applications.
An annotated sample SGA, which is based on a competitive grant solicitation that ETA published in the
summer of 2009. Annotations throughout the document include comment notes that provide readers with
information related to specific sections and general requirements of an ETA SGA; related helpful
Web sites; and hyperlinks that take readers to additional outside resources. The annotations highlight
areas of SGAs that can be particularly challenging for unfamiliar or inexperienced applicants, and
offer information to support applicants in developing more comprehensive and potentially competitive proposals.
The annotated tool is available in two formats: an interactive format with bookmarks, annotations, and hyperlinks; as well as a printer-friendly format.
Grant Applications Guide
Annotated Sample SGA
Helpful Resources
