Opportunity Overview
The North Dakota Department of Commerce Workforce Development Division is accepting applications for the Technical Skills Training Grant. The program supports rapid, nondegree workforce training, reskilling and upskilling tied to North Dakota in-demand occupations. Applications are currently open and reviewed in the order received until all allocated program funds are secured under grant agreements.
Funding and Tracks
Track A may provide up to $200,000 for new and expanding accelerated skilled-workforce training programs. Track B may provide up to $100,000 for incumbent-worker training. Track C may provide up to $200,000 for training or upskilling related to automation, or up to $100,000 for an automation feasibility study.
All tracks require at least one dollar of matching funds for each dollar of state funding requested. The guidance states that match should come from the private sector; state or federal funds may qualify only when the source permits and the Division approves the match. Cash, equipment, supplies and qualifying in-kind contributions may be used, subject to documentation and approval.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants include North Dakota colleges and universities, businesses, eligible training providers, nonprofit organizations, city and county municipalities, and trade organizations or associations. Applicants must be registered and in good standing with the North Dakota Secretary of State. Training must take place in North Dakota, a majority of participants must reside and intend to work in North Dakota, and the occupations being trained must appear on the state In-Demand Occupations List. Degree programs are not eligible.
Healthcare Workforce Relevance
The current North Dakota In-Demand Occupations List includes numerous healthcare occupations, including registered nurses, licensed practical and vocational nurses, nursing assistants, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, medical assistants, respiratory therapists, diagnostic medical sonographers, radiologic technologists, surgical technologists and other healthcare practitioners and technical workers. This creates a legitimate healthcare-workforce pathway when a project is structured around an eligible nondegree training need.
Allowable Costs and Required Proposal Elements
Eligible grant expenses include curriculum development to subcontractors, equipment other than automation equipment, tools and supplies for trainees, technology used to offer virtual training, participant recruitment, qualifying scholarships, and instructor training or certification. Operational expenses, infrastructure, land or building costs, general professional-development or leadership training, and costs incurred before award are not eligible grant expenses under the published guidance.
Applications must use the Commerce online portal and follow the mandatory proposal format. The proposal must address the project description and track, skills and occupations, North Dakota workforce demand, training delivery, business and industry involvement, partnerships, projected participants and capacity, start date, program length, accessibility, goals and timeline, and a line-item budget with narrative. The budget must identify total project cost, state funds requested, match obtained or pending, the match providers and relationship to the training, and the required cost breakout. Applicants that have not received a state payment within the prior 12 months may also need to complete North Dakota Office of Management and Budget supplier registration.
N9+ and QC Healthcare Fit
N9+ Fit Score: 82/100, conditional. A credible use case exists under Track B or another properly structured training track when a North Dakota healthcare employer or training partner is teaching in-demand clinical staff connected physical-assessment or virtual-care workflows. The Nonagon N9+ device and platform could potentially serve as curriculum-aligned training equipment or technology supporting virtual training because the grant expressly allows equipment and technology used to offer virtual training. This is not a general telehealth-equipment acquisition program, and device, platform, subscription, implementation and training costs must be confirmed as allowable within the specific proposal before commitment.
QC Healthcare could have a supporting implementation or training role only when that role is legitimately part of an eligible applicant-led workforce project. The program’s mandatory 1:1 match must be documented and approved; no match waiver is assumed.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 89/100. The opportunity is attractive because it is currently open on a genuine rolling basis, has clear award ceilings, includes healthcare occupations on the controlling in-demand list, permits equipment and virtual-training technology, and supports incumbent-worker upskilling. The mandatory 1:1 match, nondegree training limitation and requirement to demonstrate North Dakota labor-market demand materially constrain fit and should be treated as hard project-design gates rather than assumptions.
Submission and Contact
Applications are submitted only through the North Dakota Commerce Technical Skills Training Grant portal and are reviewed in the order received. The Department states that follow-up questions are generally issued about three weeks after receipt and notices of award about four weeks after receipt, with funding continuing only until allocated funds are secured under grant agreements.
Program contact: Evan Moser, North Dakota Department of Commerce, Workforce Development Division, 701-328-5324, ejmoser@nd.gov.
Official source: North Dakota Department of Commerce — Technical Skills Training Grant.