New Hampshire Workforce Pell

Where New Hampshire stands on Workforce Pell

Status

Live: an operational approval process underway, an open application window, a pilot cohort accepting programs, or an eligible-program list being finalized and submitted to ED (the Record’s definition).

Phase

Application Open (NH Online Forms); Oct 13 Votes Unposted

Lead agency

Office of Workforce Opportunity (BEA) / State Workforce Innovation Board, under the Governor per HB 1774

Current holdup

OWO / BEA / SWIB

The Office of Workforce Opportunity's Workforce Pell page now links the State of New Hampshire Workforce Pell Grant Program Policies and Procedures (the policy the SWIB was asked to adopt October 13) and a live "To apply click here" link to the NH Online Forms System, replacing the "link in development" language; BEA is the Governor's designee for receiving and reviewing applications, which are due 45 calendar days before a quarterly SWIB meeting; the October 13 packet and two audio recordings are posted but no minutes, so the votes on the policy and the four proposed first programs remain unrecorded in text; next SWIB meeting February 9, 2027; programs are anticipated to accept students in early 2027

State portal

www.nheconomy.com

What the record documents

Governor Ayotte signed HB 1774 into law in a 74-bill batch reported July 2, 2026. The law directs the governor to approve workforce training programs for federal Workforce Pell Grants. HB 1774 passed the House March 11, the Senate May 14 (amendment 2026-1728s), and was enrolled June 23; the legislature adjourned sine die June 30. No application process or agency guidance has been announced yet, but the approval process is being designed: the June 9 State Workforce Innovation Board transcript records the Office of Workforce Opportunity briefing the board, developing process options for decision-makers, and reconstituting SWIB committees, with the next full board meeting scheduled October 13, 2026; the June 9 packet also includes a 2026 High Demand Occupational List. The Office of Workforce Opportunity has since published a public Workforce Pell page (sitemap date August 18, 2026) stating that "work is underway in New Hampshire to certify programs" and that programs are anticipated "to be ready to accept students utilizing Workforce Pell grants in early 2027"; its training-provider link to the approval process, eligibility requirements, and submission instructions is marked "Link in development," and the approved-programs section is a placeholder. The October 13, 2026 SWIB packet (101 pages, posted in the week before the meeting) carries three Workforce Pell items: an informational presentation and two board motions, "Workforce Pell Process Approval" (adopting the state's Workforce Pell Grant Program Policies and Procedures) and "Workforce Pell Program Approval" (staff recommend approving the proposed programs "identified in Attachment 1"). The Attachment 1 packet posted separately ahead of the meeting (35 pages, staff signoff dated October 12), naming four proposed programs, all at Community College System of New Hampshire colleges, all deemed complete and staff-recommended for approval: Medical Assistant at Great Bay Community College (12 weeks, 480 clock hours), Lakes Region Community College (14 weeks, 170 clock hours), and Manchester Community College (12 weeks, 320 clock hours), and a Microelectronics Bootcamp at Nashua Community College (10 weeks, 400 clock hours); each application carries a blank SWIB decision box. The October 13 meeting took place: its agenda, slides, the Attachment 1 packet, and two audio recordings are posted on the board meetings page, but minutes are not (New Hampshire posts them as transcripts with a lag), no press covered the meeting, and no source yet states whether the two motions passed; the OWO page is unchanged post-meeting, still anticipating students "in early 2027" with no approved-programs listing, and the Workforce Pell Policy PDF it carries predates the vote, so its presence does not establish adoption (Attachment 1). The draft policy names BEA as the Governor's designee for receiving applications, with OWO staffing review and the SWIB approving programs at quarterly meetings only; applications are due 45 calendar days before a quarterly meeting (waivable by the OWO Director), denied applicants get a 30-day cure period and may appeal to the SWIB Chair within 30 days, approved programs will post to a "Workforce Pell Approved Program listing" on the BEA website, and programs must sit on New Hampshire's ETPL, have operated for 12 months, and meet the 70 percent completion and placement thresholds of the final rule. The next quarterly meeting after October 13 is February 9, 2027 (board packet). By October 27, 2026 the Office of Workforce Opportunity's page had replaced its "link in development" language: it now links the State of New Hampshire Workforce Pell Grant Program Policies and Procedures (nine pages, undated, matching the policy draft in the October 13 packet) and a "To apply click here" link to an application in the NH Online Forms System. The policy names the Department of Business and Economic Affairs as the Governor's designee for receiving and initially reviewing applications; applications are electronic, one package per program, due no later than 45 calendar days before a quarterly SWIB meeting (waivable by the OWO director); BEA reviews for compliance with a 30-day cure period, the SWIB consults quarterly, and denials may be appealed; eligible programs run 8 to fewer than 15 weeks with 150 to 599 clock hours (or 4 to 15 semester or 6 to 23 quarter hours), and eligibility is anchored to high-skill and high-wage definitions and a sector-based High Demand Occupation List. With a posted policy and a live application link, the process is counted as operational, while the October 13 vote outcomes remain unposted (the board meetings page carries the final packet and two audio recordings, not minutes). Source, signing coverage

Verified against the sources on November 6, 2026.

Eligible occupations in New Hampshire

The State Approval Comparison, which compares every published state eligible-occupation framework (27 so far), does not include a New Hampshire list as of November 6, 2026.

Approved Workforce Pell programs in New Hampshire

No New Hampshire program appears in the Record’s approved-programs table (U.S. Department of Education announcements and state rosters of federally approved programs) as of November 5, 2026.

Sources

Every primary source the record cites for New Hampshire, last checked November 6, 2026.

• State Workforce Pell portal (www.nheconomy.com)
• June 9 State Workforce Innovation Board transcript (www.nheconomy.com)
• Attachment 1 (www.nheconomy.com)
• board packet (www.nheconomy.com)
• State of New Hampshire Workforce Pell Grant Program Policies and Procedures (www.nheconomy.com)
• NH Online Forms System (onlineforms.nh.gov)
• Source (gc.nh.gov)
• signing coverage (indepthnh.org)