Description: The Rural Innovation Stronger Economy (RISE) Grant Program offers grant assistance to create and augment high-wage jobs, accelerate the formation of new businesses, support industry clusters and maximize the use of local productive assets in eligible low-income rural areas.
The RISE Grant Program meets a recognized need for federal support of jobs accelerator partnerships for the promotion of private investment in regional economies. The flexible use of funds by RISE grant recipients allows a region to leverage their community assets by assisting new and existing industry, establish and operate innovation centers for job development and training, including through the use of new or improved broadband service by jobs accelerators. The RISE program will improve the ability of rural communities to create high-wage jobs, accelerate the formation of rural businesses, and strengthen regional economies.
Eligibility: Eligible applicants are rural jobs accelerator partnerships with expertise in delivering economic and job training programs, consisting of the following:
Non-profit entities
State entities
Tribal entities
Institutions of higher education
Public bodies
The RISE project must serve a rural region small enough to allow close collaboration among partners. It also must include important elements of the region’s prioritized industry cluster (concentrations of related industries).
The RBCS Administrator may award points to applications from distressed communities with high concentrations of employment in coal, oil and gas industries, and coal-fired generation facilities transitioning away from fossil fueled energy production. A list of qualifying communities – which includes both county and zip code – is provided for applicants to determine if they may qualify for the points. The Administrator also may award points to an application to help ensure uniform geographic distribution across a maximum number of states, and to promote diversity among targeted industries.
Use of Funds: RISE grant funds can be used to:
Build or support a business incubator facility
Provide worker training to assist in the creation of new jobs
Train the existing workforce with skills for higher-paying jobs
Develop a base of skilled workers and improve their opportunities to obtain high-wage jobs in new or existing local industries
Award Details:
Grant amounts are awarded competitively with a minimum of $500,000 and a maximum grant amount of $2,000,000.
The grant term is 4 years.
Grant Management Associates as years of experience applying for funding opportunities such as RISE. Contact us today for consultation on this opportunity.
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