DES MOINES, IOWA (September 27, 2023) — Iowa Workforce Development and the Iowa Department of Education have announced the second round of the Build Iowa’s Future Design Challenge, a unique opportunity for K-12 students to create innovative projects, connect to careers, and compete for up to $1,000 in prizes for their schools. Community Colleges for Iowa, Master Builders of Iowa (MBI), and Pella Corporation are sponsoring the challenge awards.

DES MOINES, IOWA (August 31, 2023) — The 2023 Request for Proposal (RFP) from the MBI-WORKS (Master Builders of Workforce Opportunities Require Knowledge and Skills) Endowment Board is open to schools and non-profit programs across Iowa through Sept. 15, 2023. First announced earlier this summer, the MBI-WORKS Endowment provides resources to complement career education and workforce recruitment into the Iowa commercial construction industry.

DES MOINES, IOWA (August 17, 2023) — Eighteen months after Iowa revamped its approach to unemployment and began providing earlier job-search assistance to people seeking unemployment benefits, the average length of an unemployment claim has dropped to its lowest level in more than 55 years.

A recent review of Iowa Workforce Development data shows that unemployment claims lasted for an average of 10.7 weeks in calendar year 2022 – 10.1 weeks for the 12 months that ended May 31, 2023.

DES MOINES, IOWA (August 10, 2023) — Governor Kim Reynolds has announced a new funding opportunity targeted to support CDL programs at Iowa Community Colleges. The Iowa CDL Infrastructure Grant will provide $5 million in grants to support the infrastructure of programs that train individuals working to receive their commercial driver's license (CDL).