One state paid employers $330M to train workers. Is your school getting any of it?

$330 million.

That's how much one state has paid employers to train their workers since 2014. Over 9,000 businesses have taken the money. Almost 240,000 workers have been trained with it.

The state is Michigan. The program is the Going PRO Talent Fund. And most trade school owners have never heard of it.

How Going PRO works

• Michigan employers apply for grants to cover short-term training for current employees and new hires.

• The training has to lead to an industry-recognized, transferable credential.

• It funds classroom training, on-the-job training for new hires, and Registered Apprenticeships.

• Employers apply through their local Michigan Works! office, which helps them build the application.

And this isn't just for big manufacturers. Most of the awards go to small businesses, many with fewer than 100 employees.

The timing matters right now

The first application round of each year typically opens in October. That's this month.

Here's the catch: lawmakers nearly cut the fund this year. Manufacturers pushed back and got $14.5 million restored in the new state budget. That's a lot less than the $50 million rounds of the past.

Less money means more competition. The employers who apply early with a clear training plan and a ready training partner will get funded. Everyone else waits.

Here's what most schools miss

Going PRO doesn't write the check to you. The money goes to the employer.

That's not a problem. That's your sales pitch.

Employers have funding to train workers. What most of them don't have is the training. Someone has to deliver it. That should be you.

The schools that win will:

1. Get known by Michigan Works! Their business services teams match employers with training providers. You want to be the name they hand out.

2. Package programs that fit. Short-term, credential-based, completed in a year or less.

3. Sell to employers, not just students. Walk into a local company and say: "The state will help pay to train your people. I'll build the training and help you with the application."

That conversation sells itself.

Not in Michigan?

Pay attention anyway. Most states have some version of this money, and it almost always flows through the employer.

The playbook is the same one I teach with OJT and IWT: stop waiting for students to find you, and start getting paid by the companies that need them.

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Your move this week

In Michigan? Call your local Michigan Works! office and ask who's applying this cycle. Then list 10 employers within 30 miles of your school. Those are your new leads.

Not in Michigan? Reply with your state. I'll tell you what your version of this money looks like.

Hector - Want to know more about these grants? I talk about it here. https://www.tradeschoolsecrets.co/#grants