FY2023 U.S. Consulate Fukuoka: High-Tech Labor Force Curriculum Development Workshop | FUKUOKA PAS FY23 02

Opportunity Information: Apply for FUKUOKA PAS FY23 02

The FY2023 U.S. Consulate Fukuoka: High-Tech Labor Force Curriculum Development Workshop (Funding Opportunity Number: FUKUOKA PAS FY23 02) is a discretionary grant from the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Mission to Japan, designed to strengthen Japan's high-tech workforce pipeline by improving how educators design and deliver STEM-aligned training. The central idea is to fund one organization to run a targeted training program for Japanese educators so they can build or refine curriculum that prepares students for STEM careers that matter to the modern global economy, with an especially strong emphasis on the semiconductor sector. The program is meant to be practical and industry-facing, focusing on how schools and training institutions can align what they teach with what high-tech manufacturers actually need.

The core activity is a two-day, in-person workshop in Japan that brings together Japanese educational stakeholders and exposes them to approaches, models, and best practices connected to developing job-ready technical programs. A major theme is institutional coordination: how educational institutions can work effectively with high-tech manufacturers and government partners to keep curriculum relevant, responsive, and aligned with workforce demand. The workshop is expected to address concrete curriculum design and program-setup challenges, including how to establish technical courses that meet industry needs, how to incorporate business and process management concepts relevant to technology manufacturing environments, and how to structure collaboration with manufacturers and government entities so that training pathways connect to real hiring and skills requirements.

In addition to workforce alignment and curriculum mechanics, the workshop is also expected to cover security-related considerations that are particularly salient in advanced technology fields. Specifically, the program should include guidance on developing security processes aimed at preventing illicit technology transfer. In practice, this implies discussion of policies, training norms, and institutional procedures that help protect sensitive technologies and know-how while still supporting legitimate academic-industry collaboration. The inclusion of this topic signals that the grant is not only about technical upskilling, but also about responsible participation in high-tech ecosystems where intellectual property and controlled technologies can be a concern.

The opportunity also calls for the workshop to include a discussion of DEIA principles (diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility) as they relate to the U.S. technology sector today, with particular attention to promoting gender equality. This component is intended to help participants understand how talent development strategies can widen participation and address barriers that may limit who enters and succeeds in high-tech fields. In the context of curriculum and program design, that can translate into recruitment practices, classroom and lab culture, support structures for underrepresented learners, and broader institutional strategies that make STEM pathways more accessible and sustainable.

A key structural feature of the program is that it is not limited to the in-person workshop. The grant expects a one- or two-day preliminary online workshop held several months in advance. This online phase is meant to shape the later in-person training by collecting input and grounding the agenda in local needs. Japanese educational institutions, government officials, and industry representatives should be given the opportunity to conduct a self-assessment of their needs, identify gaps and priorities, and receive information from American educational institutions about how they are adapting programs to meet modern industry requirements. In other words, the online workshop is both diagnostic and preparatory: it helps define what skills, curricular elements, partnerships, and operational practices are most urgent, while also introducing U.S.-based examples that can inform the eventual in-person sessions.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity was created on December 21, 2022, with an original closing date of February 19, 2023. The award ceiling is $50,000, and the program anticipates making a single award (Expected Awards: 1), indicating a relatively focused project delivered by one lead implementer. The funding instrument type is a grant, and the activity categories span business and commerce, education, employment/labor and training, energy, and science and technology/research and development, reflecting the cross-cutting nature of semiconductor workforce preparation.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of public and private entities: state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; and nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories). The opportunity is listed under CFDA number 19.040, which corresponds to public diplomacy programs, consistent with the State Department's role and the workshop's emphasis on U.S.-Japan collaboration and knowledge exchange.

Overall, this grant opportunity is best understood as a compact, high-impact training and convening project: it aims to help Japanese educators and partner stakeholders develop semiconductor-relevant STEM curriculum that is industry-aligned, operationally informed, security-conscious, and shaped by modern DEIA considerations. The two-stage format (early online needs assessment followed by an in-person workshop) is designed to ensure the training is tailored rather than generic, and to promote practical takeaways that institutions can translate into new courses, stronger partnerships with manufacturers, and improved workforce readiness in high-tech fields.

• The Department of State, U.S. Mission to Japan in the business and commerce, education, employment, labor and training, energy, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY2023 U.S. Consulate Fukuoka: High-Tech Labor Force Curriculum Development Workshop" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.040.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 21, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 19, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $50,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for FUKUOKA PAS FY23 02

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