Workforce Development Funding Policy

Last updated: October 2026

Funding Standard

Workforce Development (WFD) Eligibility office will follow Clover Park Technical College financial aid guidelines for each funding source as well as additional federal, state, and local guidelines listed in this policy.

All students must follow college policies and WFD Funding source requirements to continue to participate through the WFD Eligibility office.

WFD Funding Assistance:

• Workforce funding is never guaranteed.
• WFD is not part of the financial aid office. WFD funding is contingent upon availability of funds; the student’s demonstrated financial aid, need, and award is determined on a quarter-by-quarter basis. WFD staff will review and either approve or deny student funding requests before forwarding approved requests to Student Aid & Scholarship (SAS). SAS is responsible for entering approved awards into the ctcLink system and creating bookstore accounts.
• Because WFD funding must remain compliant with all applicable financial aid regulations and determination, funding requests may be denied based on the financial aid information that is not accessible to the WFD team at the time of review.
• WFD eligible students are required to complete the current year’s FAFSA or WASFA application. Students who do not complete their financial aid application and all required financial aid documents within the initial quarter of requesting WFD funding may not be eligible for future WFD funding. This will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
• Students requesting funding assistance must meet Satisfactorily Academic Progress (SAP) policies through the Student Aid & Scholarship office, not be in student loan default, and follow guidelines for each funding source.
• Students who are on financial aid suspension (SAP), in student loan default with the Department of Education, or financially owe CPTC, may be added to the WFD caseload; however, they will not receive any funding assistance until the above-mentioned stipulations have been cleared.
• Once financial aid is awarded, these funds will be used to cover tuition/fee costs – as financial aid is always first pay.
• WFD will not reimburse for tuition, books, tools, supplies, or any additional expenses that have been covered by financial aid, third party sources, or paid out of pocket by the student.
• It is the student’s responsibility to let the WFD team know if they need funding assistance each quarter.
• WFD funding is intended to support one program and may be limited to a single quarter. Continued funding beyond the initial quarter is not guaranteed.
• Students who change programs or have completed a program may not be eligible for WFD funding. Eligibility is reviewed on a case-by-case basis and may require a Student Contract before funding is reviewed.
• WFD will not provide funding for classes that are not listed on the student’s Program Map.
• WFD funding may be permitted to cover tuition for earlier quarters within the same fiscal year, with the exception of BFET and WorkFirst.
• WFD funds are not personal funds and may not be retained, transferred, or used for any purposes other than those expressly permitted by the WFD program. Any credit balances, overages, or remaining bookstore account funds will be reconciled and refunded directly to the WFD funding source, not to the student. WFD reserves the right to adjust funding amounts and initiate return transactions to ensure compliance with WFD funding requirements and applicable regulations.
• If a student uses WFD funds in a manner not authorized by the WFD program, WFD reserves the right to remove or revoke the WFD funding from the student’s account. In this case, the student will be responsible for all charges not covered by WFD, including tuition, fees, or bookstore expenses that become unpaid as a result of the funding removal. The student must repay any remaining balances in accordance to the college’s billing policies and deadlines.
• WFD funds that are submitted to the Student Aid & Scholarship office will be returned to the WFD funding source if a student withdraws/vanishes from classes, is placed on financial aid suspension, and/or in student loan default.
• Worker Retraining (WRT) and WorkFirst Support Service (WFSS) funding disbursed to students via college check need to be claimed by the student within 180 days of disbursement.
• WFD funding is never to be released as an unclaimed check.
• WFD staff reserves the right to request case staffing with students who are not in compliance with WFD and college funding policies and guidelines; which may result in a Student Contract. (See WFD Academic Policy for Student Contract process.)

Repeated Classes:

• WFD students who need to retake classes or are not following their education plans must meet with their academic advisor or the WFD Counselor to ensure that they are still on track to graduate.
• Students who need to retake classes and are requesting WFD funding assistance must meet with the WFD staff to determine if they are eligible for funding. Students may be determined eligible to receive tuition for these classes, but they may not receive book assistance for repeated classes.
• Opportunity Grant (OG) students: OG funding for tuition may be available for a repeated class, and it will count as credits towards the overall 45-credit limit requirement.
• Students will not receive WFD funding assistance for any classes that they need to take more than twice (tuition, books, tools, uniform, etc.).

Educational Pathway Plan:

• WFD students must follow their education pathway plans and only take classes that are required or are electives for their programs.
• WFD funding may only be used for courses and expenses that are directly related to the student’s approved pathway plan; to include tuition, books, tools, or uniforms, unless approved by their academic advisor or the WFD Counselor.

Multiple Programs:

• Student Aid & Scholarship usually allows one program change mid-program and then students must complete their declared program.
• WFD funding may only be eligible for one program through completion. Students who complete their program and declare another program must be approved by the WFD office and DSHS caseworker (BFET and WorkFirst) before receiving further funding assistance from WFD.
• Funding for a second program or program change is not guaranteed and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by the WFD Counselor, Associate Director of WFD Eligibility, and the Director of Workforce Development.
• Students who are not approved to complete another program may be on our WFD caseload but will not receive additional WFD funding assistance.

Classes NOT Covered:

• WFD funding does not cover non-credit classes, non-college-approved classes, Cadet programs, or flight time fees and gas for pilot programs.
• Bachelor degree programs are not eligible for BFET or Opportunity Grant funding. Eligibility for funding bachelor’s programs under Worker Retraining and WorkFirst is determined on a case-by-case basis.
• WFD funding does not cover High School, High School plus, GED (courses and tests), Adult Basic Education (ABE - lower college level classes), or English as a Second Language (ESL) classes.

Part-time Students:

• Students who have completed FAFSA but are taking 11 credits or less are required to submit a Request to Revise Student Aid form through Student Aid & Scholarship office.
• All WFD students will be required to submit this form to make sure there is no other funding available for tuition assistance.
• WFD funding may assist with tuition that is not covered by funds through FAFSA.
• WFD will determine eligibility for tuition if students are required to take out student loans and if the student decreases student loans to receive assistance.

Bookstore Accounts:

• BFET and Opportunity Grant (books and tools), Early Achievers (books) and WorkFirst (books).
• Funding for books, tools, kits, uniforms are limited to items marked as REQUIRED for the current on the college bookstore website and must be approved by WFD staff.
• WFD funding may not cover the full cost of kits, tools, and supplies due to the extensive cost of these items.
• Students are responsible for paying any tuition, fees, and educational expenses not covered by WFD funding.
• Bookstore funding once requested, approved, and created may take more than five (5) business days before they are available for pick-up. Students can check their ctcLink accounts to confirm availability of their funding.
• Bookstore accounts will only be available through the 4^th week of the quarter.
• Students will be responsible for the cost of items that are not available through the bookstore.
• Students may be responsible for the cost of lost or stolen items.
• Students may only pick up items from the bookstore that are approved. All unused funds are returned to the WFD funding sources.

Bank Mobile

• Worker Retraining and WorkFirst Support Services
• Financial aid funds awarded are automatically applied to your tuition and fees when you register for classes each quarter. Any remaining financial aid funds will be disbursed to the student through Bank Mobile. At this time, the college only disburses Bank Mobile refunds on Wednesdays and Fridays. For more information on accessing Bank Mobile, please visit the CPTC Financial Aid webpage.
• Worker Retraining books, tools, and transportation and WorkFirst Support Service requests are disbursed to the student via Bank Mobile.
• If Bank Mobile is not set up at the time of disbursement, it is the student’s responsibility to request a college check disbursement.

Appeal Process:

WFD students may request an appeal of funding policy decisions by submitting supporting documentation for review by the Associate Director of WFD Eligibility or Director of Workforce Development, who will issue the final decision.

Workforce Development reserves the right to make exceptions to the policies listed above. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis and will be made in writing via email from the Associate Director of WFD Eligibility or the Director of Workforce Development.