In an effort to relieve financial burdens for trade students, Point Foundation and CenterLink have announced a national partnership to fund 200 career and technical education scholarships. The awards will be distributed locally through CenterLink’s network of more than 350 community centers to support LGBTQ+ and ally students pursuing vocational training.
For students training as mechanics, electricians, or healthcare workers, expenses often extend well beyond tuition. Expenses such as textbooks, specialized tools, and certification fees can create substantial financial barriers. The new scholarships aim to bridge this gap, allowing recipients to apply the financial aid toward tuition, tools, books, and fees at accredited trade schools, community colleges, adult education centers, and other approved institutions.
The partnership leverages local community infrastructure to expand access. According to research conducted by Point Foundation and the Williams Institute, 40.5 percent of LGBTQ+ people of color surveyed reported receiving very little or no information regarding financial aid. Local centers will aim to reverse this trend by pairing scholarship distribution with existing career counseling, job readiness training, and direct employment pathways.
“Our community centers understand the barriers LGBTQ+ people face because they see them every day,” CenterLink CEO Denise Spivak says in a statement. “This partnership gives centers another practical way to help people build careers and achieve greater financial stability.”
The initiative arrives during a broader rise in trade education. Data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center indicates that enrollment at public two-year colleges focusing on vocational training was nearly 20 percent higher in spring 2025 than in spring 2020.
“Every student has the capacity to build a skill and build a life around it,” Point CEO Jorge Valencia says. “By putting 200 scholarships in the hands of LGBTQ+ community centers nationwide, we’re investing directly in the skills economy—meeting students where their ambition already lives and helping them turn it into a career.”
