DES MOINES, IOWA – On Wednesday, May 28, Governor Kim Reynolds announced new grant awards for health-care employers that will help boost the industry’s workforce across Iowa, particularly in high-demand jobs.
The Iowa Healthcare Credentialing Grant, announced by Gov Reynolds during her 2025 Condition of the State, will support this workforce by funding work-based learning (WBL) programs that include an earn-and-learn component (a combination of education and on-the-job learning or training). Today’s awards, totaling $2.94 million, will provide financial support for fourteen projects focused on supporting workers in a high-demand healthcare occupation.
View the list of awardees here.
“Iowa’s health-care industry has faced worker shortages in recent years. Drawing on the earn-and-learn model for health career registered apprenticeships that has already trained eighty job-ready CNAs and EMTs and has 394 current active apprentices, our state is continuing to meet this challenge head on,” said Gov Reynolds. “The New Healthcare Credentialing Grant will support career pathways like CNAs, LPNs, RNs, and CMAs that will build on the health-care workforce where it’s needed most.”
Awardees include employers who plan to implement programs for multiple high-demand pathways, including helping employees obtain Registered Nursing (RN) training and licensure while working and programs adding positions for health care technicians, which have become more critical in recent years. In total, awarded projects are estimated to train or upskill 399 participants across the state.
“IWD often encounters Iowans who are interested in a high-demand career, but don’t have the time or resources to step out of the workforce for the amount of time it traditionally takes to complete a training program,” said Beth Townsend, Executive Director of Iowa Workforce Development. “The programs supported by this new grant are a welcome addition that not only provides career growth for many more Iowans but also supports the health-care positions that are greatly needed in so many Iowa communities.”
The occupations that grant funding will be supporting include Registered Nurse, Licensed Practical Nurse, Certified Medical Assistant, and more. For more information on the grant and today’s awards, visit Iowa Healthcare Credentialing Grant.
