High Road Training Partnerships: 2025 Grant Program
🏛 Workforce Development Board (California)
✓ Free, no account · Source: California Grants Portal · Last verified Sep 13, 2026
Can you apply?
This grant is for California-based organizations seeking to fund out-of-school-time teen internship programs. Eligible applicants typically include nonprofits, schools, libraries, and community organizations offering youth development. Programs must focus on social emotional learning and workforce readiness skills for teens. Activities must address pandemic-related challenges and prepare youth for post-secondary success.
The grant supports paid internships and related programming that build career awareness and life skills. Priority may go to programs serving underserved youth communities. All grant activities must align with the grant's focus on teen development and career preparation.
⚖️ Cost sharing / matching required — applicants must contribute their own funds.
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Program description
This cycle of the HRTP program continues the agency’s commitment to increase access to existing High Road jobs for underserved populations and creating pathways for incumbent workers seeking job growth with High Road employers. The HRTP model embodies the sector approach championed by the CWDB—industry partnerships that deliver job quality, economic equity for more workers, and climate resilience. For more information about previously funded HRTP projects, please see the CWDB’s High Road Training Partnership Profiles webpage. Applying for HRTP 2025 is a two-phase process. Phase I entails the submission of a Pre-Application via email to the CWDB prior to the application’s due date. Phase II entails the submission of the HRTP 2025 application, including narrative responses, Required Partner MOUs, and Agreements for New Projects in the Cal-E-Grants portal. Applicants approved to advance to Phase II will be emailed an invitation to apply with information and deadlines for the Phase II application process. The HRTP 2025 grant program will fund projects in two stages of project readiness: -Training Implementation -Expanding Training Implementation- Award Range: up to $3,000,000 Grant Term: 24 months Training Implementation projects deliver training programs to achieve participants’ employment and/or career advancement outcomes. These projects also model strategies for developing industry-based, worker-focused training partnerships, including labor-management partnerships. Training Implementation applicants are not required to have been funded for planning and development by CWDB provided they meet the eligibility criteria outlined in this RFA. However, applicants will be prompted to detail past planning and development activities in their Phase II application. Past Planning and Development HRTP grantees and new projects can apply for the Training Implementation project type. Expanding-Award Range: up to $5,000,000 Grant Term: 24 months An Expanding project is an existing HRTP that can demonstrate its alignment with HRTP’s Essential Elements and is expanding the partnership and/or program scope. Expanding projects must demonstrate past success in achieving training outcomes and detail how the project will focus on increasing scale and/or replication. Expanding projects should seek to increase the number of new job placements and expand the partnership’s presence within the industry. Expanding projects may also extend their capacity to adjacent industry sectors and occupations, replicate the project in other regions, and/or expand access to programming to new target populations. Expanding projects will also grow existing partnerships by adding additional program partners, enhancing conflict resolution, and developing sustainable funding mechanisms. Only past CWDB-funded Training Implementation HRTP grantees are eligible to apply as an Expanding project.
Who can apply
Eligible applicants
- 501(c)(3) Public Charity
- Individuals
- Library
- Nonprofits
- Public Authority
- Public K-12 School
- Small Business (SBA-defined)
- Tribal Nation
Demographic focus
How to apply
Application links
Key dates & requirements
Required documents
- Grant application form
- Project narrative or proposal
- Budget and budget narrative
- Organizational background/capacity documents
- Letters of commitment from internship employers
- Proof of 501(c)(3) status or government entity documentation
Program contact
- 📧 Solicitations@cwdb.ca.gov
- 📞 1-916-657-1440
Funding track record
Past applications & awards under this program (California Grants Portal) — how competitive it is.
By fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Applications | Awarded | Award rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-2026 | 83 | 7 | 8% |
Source: California Grants Portal
FAQ
Who is eligible to apply for Teens Succeed?
California-based nonprofits, schools, libraries, and community organizations can typically apply. Organizations must have the capacity to administer teen internship programs and demonstrate commitment to youth outcomes.
What activities are funded?
Out-of-school-time teen internships, social emotional learning programming, and workforce readiness skill-building are supported. Internship wages and program staff costs are typically allowable.
What is the funding amount?
Individual awards range from $50,000 to $75,000. The total statewide pool is $500,000, so funding is competitive.
When is the deadline?
The deadline is March 12, 2025. Organizations should submit applications well ahead of this date to ensure completeness.
What makes applications competitive?
Strong applications demonstrate clear teen outcomes, partnership networks, equity focus, and measurable impact on social emotional learning and workforce skills.
💡 Tips for applicants
- Clearly connect your internship model to pandemic recovery and teen resilience. Show how your program directly addresses post-COVID challenges youth face.
- Prioritize equity. Document which underserved youth populations you serve and provide specific enrollment and outcome data by demographic group.
- Build internship partnerships beforehand. Have employer letters of commitment showing internship placement sites and wages available.
- Define measurable outcomes for social emotional learning. Use validated assessment tools or clear behavioral indicators aligned to grant goals.
- Budget wages separately and justify them. Show market-rate teen wages and explain how they support program quality and equity.
⚠️ Common mistakes
Applications fail when internship wages are underbudgeted or vague employer commitments lack detail. Social emotional learning outcomes are often too abstract; use specific, measurable competencies instead. Programs that ignore pandemic-specific youth impacts miss the grant's core purpose.
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