Explore The Trades: Skills Lab Webinar.

Join Explore The Trades for a second Skills Lab Q&A webinar on Wednesday, February 28th from 3-4 PM CST.

Explore The Trades Skills Lab,
Built by Ferguson

Did you know the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects a 2% growth in plumbing jobs and a 6% growth in HVAC jobs between 2022-2032?

The skilled trades are vital to the wellbeing and growth of communities and all schools are encouraged to apply for equipment grants through this program to bring the plumbing and HVAC trades to their students.

Since 2021, 25 schools in 15 states have participated in the “Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson” initiative. Over 2,100 students have been impacted by having the plumbing and HVAC trades as part of their middle or high school education.

Explore The Trades and Ferguson are pleased to open applications for equipment grants for a fourth year. New for the 2024-2025 application year, SkillCat has joined this program to bring technical training to students of recipient schools. To complement the equipment grants, SkillCat will be providing all grant recipient schools with licenses to their platform to enhance the technical learning of students. To learn more about SkillCat, please see the information below.

Together, we continue building the skilled workforce by introducing vital trades careers to middle and high school students in the United States and Canada.

Interested applicants are encouraged to read the program criteria and FAQs linked below.

Proposed Criteria/Eligibility

Applications will be accepted from October 1, 2024 – March 31, 2025.
Grant funds will be allocated as follows:
- $25,000 worth of product and equipment available to those applying for a new plumbing or HVAC skills lab.
- $10,000 worth of product and equipment available to those applying to refurbish an existing plumbing or HVAC skills lab.
Applications may be submitted to Maddy Sorenson, Project Coordinator at Explore The Trades, at [email protected] or through the linked applications below.
For any questions about the Skills Lab initiative, please contact Kate Cinnamo, Executive Director of Explore The Trades, at [email protected] or 651-789-8518, or Maddy Sorenson, Project Coordinator at Explore The Trades, at [email protected] or 651-314-3856.

Downloadable Forms:

Online Forms:

*Please note: It is recommended to complete the application in full, as it cannot be saved and edited later.

Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson New Equipment Grant Application

Ferguson Grant Application (New)

"*" indicates required fields

School Information

Name of School*

Address of School*

Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country

Primary Contact Name*

First Last

Primary Contact Job Title*

Primary Contact Email*

Primary Contact Phone Number*

Secondary Contact Name*

First Last

Secondary Contact Job Title*

Secondary Contact Email*

Secondary Contact Phone Number*

What grade levels does the school serve?*

Middle School (grades 6-8)

High School (grades 9-12)

Number of Students Served*

What percentage of the student body receives free and reduced lunch?*

What is the demographic makeup of the student body?

Male %:*

Female %:*

BIPOC %:*

Describe the need for trades programming at the school.*

What trade will outfit the new skills lab?*

Plumbing

HVAC

What is the curriculum for the proposed trades class?*

How is this curriculum aligned with different career pathways and how are you preparing students for careers in the skilled trades? Examples could include: resume preparation, mock interviews, etc.*

How will you incorporate project-based learning into your program? Please share an example of a project that demonstrates specific skill development and problem solving.*

What is the estimated number of students who will be impacted?*

Who is the instructor for the class and are they licensed? Please list their licensure and/or certification.*

Is there space readily available for a new trades program in the building? If not, will an existing space need to be retrofitted for the new classroom? Please describe the space updates required.*

Does the school have existing trades and/or technical classes?*

Yes

Was the school planning to create a trades classroom prior to this project? If so, please note applicable partnerships that will help support this class (i.e. local service business, contractor, etc.).*

What is your plan to sustain the program after the initial funding?*

What is your plan to recruit students for the program? Do you currently have students interested in pursuing this trades program?*

How would you measure the success of this program?*

What is the anticipated date by which the class could be open to the student body?*

Industry Partner Information

Does the school program work with an industry partner, or do any community partnerships exist? If so, how are industry partners, parents, administrators etc. involved?*

If so, what is the history of the partnership and how it benefits the school, the industry partner, and the community.*

What goals would the industry partner and school look to achieve with this partnership?*

What are the metrics by which you’ll measure success?*

Did this partnership exist prior to this project?*

How do you envision this partnership to grow over the years?*

If this application is not selected, is it financially feasible for this partnership to continue?*

Explore The Trades would like to thank our program partners.

A special thank you to Ferguson,
Founding Partner of the Skills Lab program since 2021.

Partner of the Skills Lab program since 2024.

Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson Refurbished Equipment Grant Application

Ferguson Grant Application (Refurbished)

"*" indicates required fields

School Information

Name of School*

Address of School*

Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country

Primary Contact Name*

First Last

Primary Contact Job Title*

Primary Contact Email*

Primary Contact Phone Number*

Secondary Contact Name*

First Last

Secondary Contact Job Title*

Secondary Contact Email*

Secondary Contact Phone Number*

What grade levels does the school serve?

Middle School (grades 6-8)

High School (grades 9-12)

Number of Students Served*

What percentage of the student body receives free and reduced lunch?*

What is the demographic makeup of the student body?

Male %:*

Female %:*

BIPOC %:*

For which trade is your skills lab built?*

Plumbing

HVAC

How long has the class been offered to students?*

What is the curriculum for the class?*

How is this curriculum aligned with different career pathways and how are you preparing students for careers in the skilled trades? Examples could include: resume preparation, mock interviews, etc.*

How do you incorporate project-based learning into your program? Please share an example of a project that demonstrates specific skill development and problem solving.*

Describe the growth of the program (i.e. student enrollment).*

How do you measure the success of the program?*

Please briefly describe the types of repairs or new equipment that is needed.*

Is space refurbishment needed for required city and/or building code?*

What is the estimated number of students who will be impacted if the skills lab is refurbished?*

Please provide the proposed floorplan of the classroom and equipment.*

Upload a floorplan, if you have one, here:

Max. file size: 16 MB.

Upon receiving new equipment and/or completing space refurbishments, what is the anticipated date by which the class could be open to the student body?*

Industry Partner Information

Does the school program work with an industry partner, or do any community partnerships exist? If so, how are industry partners, parents, administrators etc. involved?*

If so, please explain the history of the partnership and how it benefits the school, the industry partner, and the community.*

What goals would the host company and school look to achieve (or have achieved) with this partnership?*

How has success been measured with this partnership?*

Did this partnership exist prior to this project?*

If this application is not selected, is it financially feasible for the class to continue?*

Explore The Trades would like to thank our program partners.

A special thank you to Ferguson,
Founding Partner of the Skills Lab program since 2021.

Partner of the Skills Lab program since 2024.

(L to R) Photo courtesy of Callaway High School; photo courtesy of Lebanon County Career and Technology Center.

Explore The Trades Partners with SkillCat

Explore The Trades is excited to announce a new partnership between SkillCat and the "Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson” equipment grants!

This partnership will further enhance the student experience and complement the existing curriculum used by Skills Lab instructors.

SkillCat is an app-based training program for those looking to begin, or develop, their careers in the trades. With various certifications available like EPA 608, OSHA-10, and trade school diploma programs, SkillCat is making trades education possible, which makes their place in the Skills Lab program a great fit.

Interested in using SkillCat? Try it today! Use the code “ETT20” and get a jumpstart on learning valuable skills for your trades career.

Learn more about SkillCat with the link below!

SkillCat