GEOFF BENNETT: For decades, federal Pell Grants have helped millions of students from low- and middle-income families afford college.

Now, for the first time, that financial aid will also be available for short-term vocational training programs designed to help students enter the work force.

Stephanie Sy reports on the rollout of Workforce Pell, the largest expansion of the federal grant program in 50 years.

It's part of our higher education series called Rethinking College.

STEPHANIE SY: At Ivy Tech Community College campus in Anderson, Indiana, learning is hands-on.

WOMAN: Fourth intercostal space, we're going to put that right here.

STEPHANIE SY: From putting on an EKG to administering shots... WOMAN: Good job.

Good technique.

STEPHANIE SY: ... to drawing blood.

In just eight weeks, these students are trained to become certified clinical medical assistants, or CCMAs.

They're the folks at the doctor's office who might take your vital science or get your medical history at the start of your appointment.

And they're in high demand, says program chair Sara Standlee.

SARA STANDLEE, Ivy Tech Community College: A lot of my students, they'll get hired before they graduate.

That's how much of a need there is for medical assistants out there right now, because the fact of the matter is, is we have got a lot of people that need medical care, and we don't have enough people to be able to care for them.

STEPHANIE SY: Twenty-two-year-old Makaila Collins sees becoming a CCMA as a stepping-stone on the way to becoming a registered nurse.

MAKAILA COLLINS, Student, Ivy Tech Community College: I decided to take the route of getting my CCMA first.

And then a lot of the times, if you go work for like a big hospital network, they will actually pay for you to go back to nursing school.

STEPHANIE SY: Just getting here took perseverance and waiting a lot of tables.

MAKAILA COLLINS: I had to take a break for a few years and just work just to build up that savings to be able to pay for this class.

STEPHANIE SY: How much was that?

Do you remember?

MAKAILA COLLINS: One thousand four hundred and fifty-three dollars.

(LAUGHTER) MAKAILA COLLINS: I remember exactly because I had to take it all out and then send in the payment.

STEPHANIE SY: But, soon, students in this course will have access to new financial support.

This summer, Ivy Tech's certified clinical medical assistant program became the second in the country to be approved for a new federal grant called Workforce Pell.

(CHEERING) STEPHANIE SY: President Trump signed it into law in the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill.

NICHOLAS KENT, U.S.

Undersecretary of Education: We're actually building the new program to align with industry needs and provide a much-needed alternative to the traditional four-year experience.

STEPHANIE SY: It expands the Pell Grant program, which first rolled out in 1973 to give students from low-income households a path to higher education and ideally a path into the middle class.

Pell Grants help fund college-style courses at least a semester or 15 weeks' long.

Now, under Workforce Pell, short courses between eight to 15 weeks in length qualify.

MOLLY DODGE, Senior Vice President of Work Force and Careers, Ivy Tech Community College: Fifty-eight percent of our students access federal Pell.

STEPHANIE SY: Molly Dodge, Ivy Tech's senior vice president of work force and careers, has advocated for the change for more than a decade.

MOLLY DODGE: In Indiana, we're a bit competitive, so we wanted to be first, but we were thrilled to have such a quick turnaround on the approval and the opportunity to now launch a Workforce Pell program.

STEPHANIE SY: To be eligible for funding, programs must train students for occupations defined by each state as high skill, high wage or in demand and meet federal requirements.

MOLLY DODGE: Workforce Pell has what we call the 70/70 rule, meaning 70 percent of our learners need to complete the program, which has not been an issue at Ivy Tech, but also 70 percent of the cohort enrolled in a Workforce Pell pathway have to be employed associated with that training six months after they graduate.

STEPHANIE SY: The federal government started accepting applications in July.

And so far, 21 programs across six states have been approved to train future emergency medical technicians, firefighters, electrical line workers, and more.

Once Workforce Pell rolls out nationwide, an estimated 190,000 students per year will receive an average grant of $2,200.

Ivy Tech expects the funding to especially benefit its adult learners, many of whom, like CCMA students Kaitlynn Creason and Terra Randolph, are juggling parenting, work, and school.

TERRA RANDOLPH, Student, Ivy Tech Community College: I really want to be a nurse, but having my two children and then being young, I just knew that getting my foot in the door would help me eventually make that goal.

STEPHANIE SY: They say being able to enter a medical occupation after only two months is a major bonus.

KAITLYNN CREASON, Student, Ivy Tech Community College: If I were doing a two-year program, it's like, dang, my kid's going to be 5 by the time I finally get one step closer.

So I think that would be just a little bit discouraging.

STEPHANIE SY: What about you, Terra?

Do you think that, without this, you would not have a path towards postsecondary education?

TERRA RANDOLPH: To an extent, yes, because nowadays, with the economy, like, it's hard.

It's hard to raise a family off of one person's income.

And with it being a shortened course, it allows me to get out there quicker.

STEPHANIE SY: Some states identified this need years ago.

Here in Indiana, the Workforce Ready Grants have existed since 2017, helping students fund those shorter-term vocational courses.

This year, demand for that state funding exceeded supply; 41-year-old father Jenkins Reese counts himself lucky.

It covered his tuition for a three-week commercial driver's license.

JENKINS REESE, Graduate, Vincennes University: I was ecstatic that I was able to get the grant to do it, so -- because this is going to help my family tremendously.

STEPHANIE SY: He owns a construction company, but with work scarce in the winter, truck driving will help support his family of eight.

JENKINS REESE: Jobs are already coming in recruiting us to work for them.

So I really don't even have to go look for the work.

That's a great benefit of it.

STEPHANIE SY: According to Indiana, grant recipients who complete their training programs increase their salaries by about $6,800 a year.

But skeptics say short-term courses may not all live up to their promise.

WESLEY WHISTLE, New America: I think some of these programs will have really great outcomes.

I worry that more of them will not.

STEPHANIE SY: Wesley Whistle works on student success and affordability at New America, a progressive think tank where he's advised over 30 states on their rollout of Workforce Pell.

WESLEY WHISTLE: We have to do right by our Pell students, because, if we don't put in the right guardrails, then we really risk sending them into programs with taxpayer money that actually won't actually pay off for them.

STEPHANIE SY: He points to research suggesting that the earnings boost from short-term certificates is short-lived, and says they are no substitute for a college degree.

WESLEY WHISTLE: One of my biggest concerns with Workforce Pell over the last decade that I worked on this has been the risk of a potential -- quote, unquote -- "diversion effect," where when you're talking to a low-income student, when you tell them that they can go for eight weeks and get a middle-class job, that's really promising.

And the problem is, if that reality doesn't line up in many cases, right, all the evidence says the more education you get, on average, the more training you have, the higher earning potential you have.

MOLLY DODGE: I think there's a both/and for accelerated programs, for associate degree programs, for four-year programs.

STEPHANIE SY: But back at Ivy Tech, Molly Dodge says a student can build on Workforce Pell programs.

MOLLY DODGE: We need to offer as many pathways as possible for students to access the education that they need to qualify for a role.

Then we, the employers, postsecondary, need to work together to ensure those students then have access to upskilling pathways to continue their education.

STEPHANIE SY: Student Makaila Collins is already applying for certified clinical medical assistant roles, but her income might face at least a temporary hit.

MAKAILA COLLINS: Even if it is a pay cut, it's worth it because I always tell people, I love waitressing, but I'm not passionate about it like I'm passionate about health care.

STEPHANIE SY: And she says worth it to get herself one step closer to becoming a full-fledged nurse.

MAKAILA COLLINS: I can't wait for the day that I'm out of school and I can sit back and be like, wow, I really did that.

Wow, I'm really proud of myself for doing that.

STEPHANIE SY: For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Stephanie Sy in Anderson, Indiana.