Job Corps Enrollments On Again

The US Labor Department lifted the hold on Job Corps enrollments Monday, ending the action took in January to deal with an estimated $60 million shortfall for the federal job-training program.

The move comes as good news for individuals who have been locked out of the program, but the Job Corps still plans to reduce enrollment by 20 percent, according to the National Job Corps Association.

The Job Corps, which enrolls about 60,000 students each year, has encountered two consecutive budget deficits since USDOL moved the program’s budgeting and procurement operations from the Office of Job Corps to the Employment and Training division. The previous shortfall reached $30 million and prompted the Labor Department to freeze Job Corps enrollment for the first time in its 48-year history last summer and again in December.