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'Workforce Pell' kicks off, but colleges find that few programs qualify

July 1 marks the official opening of a program that allows federal dollars to go toward short-term workforce training programs. But so far, just 12 states have created road maps for colleges to apply.

Copyright 2026 NPR

Elissa Nadworny reports on all things college for NPR, following big stories like unprecedented enrollment declines, college affordability, the student debt crisis and workforce training. During the 2020-2021 academic year, she traveled to dozens of campuses to document what it was like to reopen during the coronavirus pandemic. Her work has won several awards including a 2020 Gracie Award for a story about student parents in college, a 2018 James Beard Award for a story about the Chinese-American population in the Mississippi Delta and a 2017 Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in innovation.