New Jersey's Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced a Notice of Grant Opportunity on September 1, 2026 for Round 1 of its Fiscal Year 2027 Pre-Apprenticeship in Career Education (PACE) Grant Program. Funding is expected to be up to $3,000,000, contingent on the availability of funds. The application window is still open: letters of intent are due by noon on Friday, October 23, 2026, and applications by noon on Friday, October 30, 2026. Technical assistance workshops were held September 23 and October 1. PACE funds pre-apprenticeship programs that prepare people for Registered Apprenticeship. Each program must have a documented partnership with at least one Registered Apprenticeship sponsor that is committed to hiring from the pre-apprenticeship program within 18 months of the contract start. The program focuses on people disconnected from employment, training and education, including the long-term unemployed, displaced homemakers, homeless individuals, single parents and other under-represented groups. Participants must be New Jersey residents with authorization to work in the United States. Pre-apprentices may not be charged fees, tuition or materials costs. Applicants can include stipends in their budgets; a stipend is not a wage. Competitive proposals can cost no more than $12,000 per participant, and contracts are paid on a cost-reimbursement basis. The contract period is expected to run January 1, 2027 to June 30, 2028. Eligible applicants include labor organizations, labor-management partnerships, public schools and colleges, trade and business associations, nonprofit and community-based organizations, local workforce development boards and training providers on the state's Eligible Training Provider List. Organizations that received FY2026 Round 2 PACE funding are not eligible for this round. This is a competitive grant opportunity for training organizations, not a job offer or a guarantee of awards. Read the full notice before applying.