Labor and Industry announces 2025 Youth Skills Training grant recipients

Seventeen partnerships across Minnesota will receive funding to develop and expand programs to offer meaningful career exposure and paid work experience for students 16 years of age and older.

The grants are part of the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry’s (DLI) Youth Skills Training (YST) program that was signed into law in 2017 with bipartisan support to create and provide employment training for student learners ages 16 and older in high-growth, high-demand occupations.

“These grants empower local communities to build strong pipelines of skilled talent, ensuring that Minnesota students gain safe, valuable, real-world work experience while addressing critical workforce demands in high-growth sectors,” said Nicole Blissenbach, DLI commissioner. “Youth Skills Training is an investment in Minnesota’s future. Thank you to everyone who has supported this program.”

YST grants will be awarded to the following 17 partnerships, which will receive and split $1.5 million in funding to be used for programs operating from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2027. The partnerships will offer safe, meaningful work experience in advanced manufacturing, agriculture, automotive, health care and information technology.

• Alexandria Area High School

• Cass Lake-Bena High School

• createMPLS

• Dawson-Boyd Public Schools

• Edina Public Schools

• Faribault Public Schools

• Marshall Public Schools

• Minneapolis Public Schools - Career and Technical Education

• Monticello High School

• Princeton Public Schools

• Robbinsdale Area Schools

• Rochester Public Schools

• Roseau School District

• Shakopee High School

• TrekNorth Jr. and Sr. High School

• West Central Area School District

• West St. Paul, Mendota Heights, Eagan Area School District

Grants can be used to create programs, recruit students and employers, provide training, transport students and pay for industry-related student certifications. A ninth round of grant applications will open in winter 2025.

More information

For more information about Youth Skills Training contact Jo Daggett, program manager, at 651-284-5354 or jo.daggett@state.mn.us ; Nimo Samatar, program consultant, at 651-284-5184 or nimo.samatar@state.mn.us; or Faye Blough, program specialist, at 651-284-5341 or faye.blough@state.mn.us.