See notice of award, attachment 1 - terms and conditions, attachment d - statement of work, abstract

The Arkansas Division of Workforce Services received a $3.21 million Cooperative Agreement from the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration under the Workforce Data Quality Initiative (WDQI, CFDA 17.261). The three-year award, effective July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2028, funds the development and enhancement of Arkansas's longitudinal administrative database system that integrates workforce and education data from pre-kindergarten through the workforce. This initiative enables comprehensive analysis of individual educational and employment outcomes to provide evidence-based insights regarding the effectiveness of education and training programs for policymakers, stakeholders, jobseekers, and government institutions.

The cooperative agreement supports Arkansas's capacity-building efforts in workforce data infrastructure and analytics, positioning the state to better serve its workforce development system participants including state workforce agencies, educational institutions, community colleges, and local workforce development boards. This award is part of a broader federal investment, with six states receiving WDQI cooperative agreements totaling approximately $19.4 million in July 2025, reflecting the Department of Labor's commitment to modernizing state workforce information systems for continuous improvement of employment and training services.