Hawkeye Community College

Hawkeye Community College, a state-controlled public institution of higher education headquartered in Waterloo, Iowa, receives federal grant funding as a prime recipient across workforce development, community service, and transportation safety programs. The college does not hold federal contracts or participate in contract vehicles; its federal footprint consists entirely of direct grants from civilian agencies, with 88% of awards held as prime recipient status and 12% as sub-recipient on grants led by other institutions.

Hawkeye's grant portfolio centers on three concrete capability areas. The college operates a Commercial Driver's License training program funded through repeated awards from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration under the Commercial Motor Vehicle Operator Safety Training Grants program (CFDA 20.235): a $200 thousand grant awarded September 1, 2023 through September 30, 2025 to enroll at least 38 students, a $132,375 grant awarded August 26, 2024 extending through September 30, 2026, and a $774 thousand grant awarded December 1, 2025 with a reduced funding amount due to agency-wide geographic dispersal. The college also administers workforce development and pre-apprenticeship programs: a $1.5 million "We Build Waterloo YouthBuild" Project Grant from the Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (awarded June 1, 2024, ultimate completion September 30, 2027) supporting construction trades and Industry 4.0 training for 66 participants with barriers to employment, and a "Scaling Manufacturing and Renewables Training in Iowa (SMART Iowa)" grant from the same agency (awarded September 30, 2023, extending to September 30, 2028) focused on advanced manufacturing and clean energy pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships in northeast Iowa in partnership with One Cedar Valley and the Corporation for a Skilled Workforce. The college also manages senior and volunteer service programs: a $1,011,331 AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion Program grant (CFDA 94.016) from the Corporation for National and Community Service Office of Grants Management (awarded September 5, 2025, completing June 30, 2028) deploying economically disadvantaged volunteers aged 55 and older to serve vulnerable adults, and an earlier AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion Program grant (CFDA 94.016) awarded July 1, 2022 (ultimate completion September 30, 2025).

Customer concentration is dispersed across workforce and education funders. The top five agencies by award count account for 83% of recent grants, led by the Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education (11 awards), the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (9 awards), the Corporation for National and Community Service Office of Grants Management (7 awards), the Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (5 awards), and the broader Corporation for National and Community Service (3 awards). Combined dollars obligated across all 42 awards total $94.9 million. In its sub-recipient role, Hawkeye serves as a project partner on AmeriCorps Seniors initiatives led by the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service (two sub-awards: August 20, 2025 and September 1, 2024), contributes Career and College Transitions Coordinator services to an Indian Hills Community College consortium grant (October 21, 2024), participates in a Des Moines Area Community College competency-based education project (February 1, 2024), and coordinates STEM outreach under an Iowa State University Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation award (March 22, 2023). Two grants reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, exposing modest recompete opportunity.