Opportunity Overview
The Maryland State Department of Education FY2027 Career and Technical Education Perkins Reserve Grant is a competitive school-to-workforce opportunity focused on establishing or expanding high school level Registered Apprenticeships. The program is especially relevant to Atlas because Maryland identifies Health Care & Social Assistance as a statewide priority sector and permits eligible education applicants to build employer-connected career pathways.
Funding and Deadline
MSDE has made $500,000 available and anticipates two to four awards. Applications are due September 14, 2026 at 5:00 PM ET. MSDE lists additional customer-support sessions on September 2 and September 10 for applicants preparing submissions.
Who Can Apply
Direct applicants are Perkins formula-funded Maryland local education agencies and community colleges. Projects must align with the applicant’s Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment, FY2027 local application, Perkins V requirements and Maryland’s broader college-and-career pathway goals. MSDE may prioritize rural applicants and areas with high percentages or numbers of CTE concentrators or participants.
Healthcare Workforce Use Case
The strongest healthcare application is a school or community-college partnership with hospitals, health systems, FQHCs, RHCs, EMS agencies, long-term-care organizations, behavioral-health providers or other employers to create or expand a compliant healthcare Registered Apprenticeship pathway. Projects may focus on expanding student access and awareness, integrating required Related Instruction, strengthening employer partnerships and building work-based-learning infrastructure tied to high-demand occupations.
Allowable Cost Intelligence
The controlling Grant Information Guide permits eligible costs such as instructional equipment, instructional materials and supplies, software, professional services, curriculum development, professional development, CTE staff costs, career guidance and work-based-learning transportation, subject to the program’s restrictions and any required MSDE preapproval. Applicants should not assume that every healthcare technology purchase qualifies simply because instructional equipment or software can be allowable.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 93/100. This is a high-value Maryland education-health partnership opportunity because it directly connects secondary education, employers and workforce-shortage sectors. A well-designed healthcare apprenticeship can create a durable recruitment pipeline for rural and underserved communities while giving students structured, employer-connected clinical career exposure.
N9+ Direct Vendor Fit: 30/100. N9+ may be defensible as instructional equipment or software when it directly supports approved healthcare Related Instruction or apprenticeship competencies, but this is not a telehealth procurement. Atlas should require MSDE confirmation before budgeting N9+ hardware, licensing or services.
Application Readiness
Applicants should confirm Perkins formula eligibility, align the project to the Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment and FY2027 local application, document employer and stakeholder commitments, define the apprenticeship pathway and Related Instruction model, obtain required preapproval for restricted cost categories, complete the application, save the final submission as a PDF, upload it to the applicant’s FY2027 SharePoint grant folder and notify MSDE after upload.
Official source: Maryland State Department of Education — FY2027 CTE Perkins Reserve Grant.