PAsmart connects Pennsylvanians with resources to work, learn or train in the state. Our businesses have openings and Pennsylvanians need jobs. PAsmart aims to help citizens get the skills they need, the way they like, for the jobs they want. Looking for jobs, choosing a career, or dealing with new work can be exciting and challenging. PAsmart makes it easy to learn about the tools and resources available to help you.

PAsmart Principles and Funding Priorities

PAsmart is designed to provide flexible resources to support innovation, and cross-sector alignment and collaboration, to increase equity, remove barriers to access, and build on existing initiatives and fill gaps, to better serve Pennsylvania students, workers, businesses, and communities. PAsmart grants will support the following principles and funding priorities:

• Data-driven Innovation: Proposals identify a clear problem, challenge, or opportunity supported by relevant data and information, and include an innovative strategy to increase opportunity for Pennsylvania students, workers, employers, and communities.

• Cross-sector Partnership: Proposals demonstrate an effort to develop strong, high-quality cross- sector partnerships committed to working collaboratively to implement the proposal. Applicants are encouraged to have multiple partners across sectors (e.g. education partner, workforce development, business, economic development, and community partners) that demonstrate their commitment through letters of support.

• Cross-sector Alignment: Proposals align with existing local, regional, and state education, workforce, and economic development initiatives.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Proposals engage partners, customers, and stakeholders, including the target population, in the development of the proposal and its implementation.

• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Proposals demonstrate a commitment to serve and increase access for historically under-represented and under-served students, workers, businesses, and communities. Applicants are encouraged to identify and address barriers to education and employment.

• Capacity Building: Proposals build the applicant’s or partners’ organizational capacity to better implement the proposal and support students, workers, businesses, and communities.

• Leveraging Existing Resources: Proposals demonstrate PAsmart resources will leverage and supplement, not supplant, existing public and private resources (e.g. other federal or state grants and philanthropic contributions, cash, in-kind, etc.). Proposals demonstrate efficient and effective use of resources.

• Performance Outcomes: Proposals include measurable performance outcomes and a strategy to collect, analyze, and report performance data.