President Bush's 2005 budget proposal includes $250 million for a new Community College Initiative. This program will help train workers to meet the needs of high-growth industries.

Adaptable and accessible, community colleges are vital partners in workforce development. The partnership between industry, which is driving the identification of skills, and community colleges, which are developing curricula and delivering training to prepare individuals to meet employers' demand, is a powerful economic development tool. Community colleges are increasingly critical providers of job training, both for degree-seekers and for workers seeking to retool, refine, and broaden their skills. To date, however, their potential has not been fully realized. The President's Budget builds on this potential by strengthening the role of community colleges in workforce development, providing $250 million for a new, employer-focused grant program for training in community and technical colleges. To receive funding, qualified applicants would be required to prepare a training plan with community colleges and employers, and certify that training would focus on industries with demonstrated labor shortages, such as health care and advanced manufacturing.