Chapter DWD 802

Chapter DWD 802

TECHNICAL EDUCATION GRANTS

DWD 802.01   Authority and purpose.

DWD 802.02   Applicability.

DWD 802.03   Definitions.

DWD 802.04   Application.

DWD 802.05   Grant awards.

DWD 802.06   Match requirement.

DWD 802.07   Use of grant funds.

DWD 802.08   Amount of grants.

DWD 802.09   Reporting requirements.

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DWD 802.01 DWD 802.01 Authority and purpose. This chapter is created to establish the rules for administering and awarding technical education grants to applicants, as defined in s. DWD 802.03 (1).

DWD 802.01 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; CR 25-046: am. Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.02 DWD 802.02 Applicability. This chapter applies to the department, applicants for grants, and school districts in this state that are awarded grants for technical education equipment under s. 106.275, Stats.

DWD 802.02 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22.

DWD 802.03 DWD 802.03 Definitions. In this chapter:

DWD 802.03(1) (1) “Applicant” means a school district or a consortium consisting of multiple school districts in this state that applies to the department for a grant.

DWD 802.03(2) (2) “Department” means the department of workforce development.

DWD 802.03(3) (3) “Grant” means an agreement between the department and the grantee whereby the department provides funds from the appropriation under s. 20.445 (1) (cg), Stats., for the purposes specified in s. 106.275 (1) (b), Stats.

DWD 802.03(4) (4) “Grantee” means an applicant awarded a grant by the department.

DWD 802.03(5) (5) “Grant program announcement” or “GPA” means a document that describes the grant program under this chapter, invites applications for a grant, specifies who may apply, establishes application procedures, specifies how the department will evaluate applications based on the criteria for awarding the grants, and establishes conditions and restrictions that accompany grants.

DWD 802.03(6) (6) “Non-sparsity aid applicant” means an applicant that is not a sparsity aid applicant.

DWD 802.03(7) (7) “Sparsity aid applicant” means an applicant that is either a school district that is eligible for sparsity aid under s. 115.436, Stats., or a consortium that includes at least one school district that is so eligible.

DWD 802.03 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; EmR2418: emerg. am. (1), (4), eff. 12-10-24; CR 25-046: am. (1), (4), cr. (6), (7) Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.04 DWD 802.04 Application.

DWD 802.04(1) (1) Procedure. The department shall solicit applications for grants by preparing one or more GPAs, publishing a notice of the availability of each GPA on the department’s website, and distributing copies of the GPA on request. An applicant shall apply for a grant on an application form included in the GPA by the date specified in the GPA and in accordance with the procedures and requirements specified in the GPA.

DWD 802.04 Note Note: GPAs can be found on the department’s website at http://wisconsinfastforward.com/wff_standard.htm.

DWD 802.04(2) (2) Contents. An applicant for a grant shall describe all of the following:

DWD 802.04(2)(a) (a) The purpose and need for the grant.

DWD 802.04(2)(b) (b) The projected outcomes the applicant seeks to achieve as a result of receiving the grant.

DWD 802.04(2)(c) (c) A summary of the applicant’s proposed budget for the enhancement or improvement of a technical education facility or for the acquisition of equipment used in advanced manufacturing or construction fields in the workplace, including any software necessary for the operation of that equipment and any instructional material necessary to train pupils in the operation of that equipment. The proposed budget shall include the amount, form, and source of the matching funds required under s. DWD 802.06.

DWD 802.04(2)(d) (d) A justification of the proposed budget under par. (c) that details cost estimates used in compiling the budget.

DWD 802.04(2)(e) (e) A narrative description of the program for which the applicant will enhance or improve a technical education facility or acquire equipment used in advanced manufacturing or construction fields in the workplace.

DWD 802.04(2)(f) (f) Any other information required in the GPA.

DWD 802.04 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; EmR2418: emerg. am. (2) (b), (c), (e), eff. 12-10-24; CR 25-046: am. (2) (b), (c), (e) Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.05 DWD 802.05 Grant awards.

DWD 802.05(1) (1) Preliminary review. The department shall review each application for compliance with the format and content specifications of s. DWD 802.04 (2) and the GPA. The department may deny any application that fails to meet any of those criteria.

DWD 802.05(2) (2) Evaluation criteria.

DWD 802.05(2)(a) (a) If the department does not deny a grant application under sub. (1), the department shall evaluate the application against all of the following criteria:

DWD 802.05(2)(a)1. 1. Demand-driven need based on labor market data and employer partnerships.

DWD 802.05(2)(a)2. 2. Leveraging of partnerships with employers and matching funds.

DWD 802.05(2)(a)3. 3. Optimizing regional training capacity and the number of skilled workers as validated by relevant employers.

DWD 802.05(2)(a)4. 4. Building on proven programs.

DWD 802.05(2)(a)5. 5. Demonstrating sustainability of training pupils in the use of equipment that will be acquired with grant moneys.

DWD 802.05(2)(b) (b) For each GPA, the department shall establish and make available a grant evaluation rubric and scoresheet that requires the department to assign points to each application signifying the degree to which the application meets each criterion under par. (a), except that the grant evaluation rubric and scoresheet may allow the department to assign a greater number of points to applications for which private sources contribute all or some of the matching funds required under s. DWD 802.06. The total points assigned to the application for all applicable criteria will be the score for the application. The department shall numerically rank each application for each GPA.

DWD 802.05 Note Note: Grant evaluation rubrics and scoresheets can be found on the department’s website at http://wisconsinfastforward.com/wff_standard.htm.

DWD 802.05(3) (3) Making awards. For each GPA, the department shall award grants to the applicants so that not less than one-third of grant moneys awarded in a fiscal biennium are provided to sparsity aid applicants. For sparsity aid applicants, the department shall award grants to applicants with the highest numerical scores under sub. (2) (b) compared to other sparsity aid applicants and for non-sparsity aid applicants, the department shall award grants to applicants with the highest numerical scores under sub. (2) (b) compared to other non-sparsity aid applicants.

DWD 802.05(4) (4) Notification. The department shall notify each applicant in writing of the department’s decision on the application by the date set in the GPA.

DWD 802.05(5) (5) Contract. The department shall make each grant award through a contract between the department and the applicant selected to receive the grant.

DWD 802.05 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; EmR2418: emerg. am. (3), eff. 12-10-24; CR 25-046: am. (3) Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.06 DWD 802.06 Match requirement. An applicant may not be awarded a grant unless the applicant provides matching funds in the form of money or the monetary value of equipment contributed from private sources or the applicant or from both private sources and the applicant and that are equal to one of the following:

DWD 802.06(1) (1) Except as provided in sub. (2), if the matching funds are contributed from private sources, 100 percent of the grant amount awarded.

DWD 802.06(2) (2) If any of the matching funds are contributed from school district funds, 200 percent of the grant amount awarded.

DWD 802.06 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; EmR2418: emerg. renum. DWD 802.06 to (intro.) and am., cr. (1), (2), eff. 12-10-24; CR 25-046: renum. DWD 802.06 to (intro.) and am., cr. (1), (2) Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.07 DWD 802.07 Use of grant funds. A grantee may use grant funds only for the enhancement or improvement of technical education facility or for the acquisition of equipment that is used in advanced manufacturing or construction fields in the workplace, together with any software necessary for the operation of that equipment and any instructional material necessary to train pupils in the operation of that equipment.

DWD 802.07 History History: EmR2001: emerg. cr., eff. 2-25-20; CR 20-015: cr. Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; EmR2418: emerg. am., eff. 12-10-24; CR 25-046: am. Register September 2025 No. 837, eff. 10-1-25.

DWD 802.08 DWD 802.08 Amount of grants. The amount of a grant shall be based on the amount requested by the applicant and approved by the department, except that no grant may be less than $5,000 nor more than $100,000.