Press Release

U.S. Department of Commerce Invests $1.5 Million in CARES Act Recovery Assistance to Support Construction of Career Workforce Academy in Fargo, North Dakota

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $1.5 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to North Dakota State College of Science Foundation, Wahpeton, North Dakota, to build the Career Workforce Academy in Fargo. This EDA grant, to be matched with $4,840,139 in local investment, is expected to create 109 jobs.

“The Economic Development Administration is committed to helping communities across the nation implement strategies to mitigate economic hardships brought on by the coronavirus pandemic,” said Dennis Alvord, Acting Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. “The Career Workforce Academy will diversify and increase the resiliency of the regional economy in response to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic by providing training to students seeking jobs in high-demand industries, including health care, biosciences, information technology, and robotics.”

“Building the new Career Workforce Academy in Fargo will expand access to career and technical training for students in the region, providing them with the opportunity to develop in-demand skills and earn a head start on their careers,” said Senator John Hoeven. “Additionally, this effort will further assist with the economic recovery from COVID-19 across the region by helping businesses attract and retain skilled employees. North Dakota depends on trained, motivated, hard-working individuals to support our economy, and we appreciate EDA investing these CARES Act funds into our state.”

“By investing in North Dakota’s education system, these CARES Act funds will help create more economic opportunities in the state, both now and in the future,” said Senator Kevin Cramer. “Building a Career Workforce Academy in Fargo will strengthen and broaden the potential of our state’s workers. I am glad this project has secured more assistance to help it advance toward completion.”

This project was made possible by the regional planning efforts led by the Lake Agassiz Regional Council, which EDA funds to help bring together the public and private sectors to create an economic development roadmap to strengthen the regional economy, support private capital investment, and create jobs.

This project is funded under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Public Law 116-136 PDF), which provided EDA with $1.5 billion for economic assistance programs to help communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance, which is being administered under the authority of the bureau’s flexible Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) (PDF) program, provides a wide-range of financial assistance to eligible communities and regions as they respond to and recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation's regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA makes investments in economically distressed communities in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation, and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.