Agency awards eight technology-center lottery grants after rubric-based review

Corey Gray described a second, smaller pool of leftover lottery funds designated for technology centers. Staff used the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission’s critical occupation list (August 2024) and a scoring rubric that added preference points for rural designation and smaller service areas. Gray said 20 technology-center applications were submitted and the committee awarded eight grants: seven in Trade & Industry (T&I) and one in Health.

Gray said the review team were CareerTech employees from the agency office (to avoid divisional bias). A board member moved to approve the technology-center awards and the board approved the motion by roll-call vote.

Staff said the awards reflect the agency’s goal of aligning grants to critical occupations and that awardees will be notified to execute purchases within the required timelines.