Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Education today awarded four $1 million grants through the Career Academy Incentive Fund to increase access to career academy programs in high-demand fields through new regional centers. The recipients are Iowa Central Community College, North Scott Community School District, Northwest Iowa Community College and Southwestern Community College. The new regional centers will be based in Storm Lake, Eldrige, Sioux Center and Mount Ayr, according to a news release. Each will serve students from surrounding school districts. At the new centers, students will have access to career and technical education programs and equipment to prepare them for high-demand careers including advanced manufacturing, agriculture equipment technology, automotive repair, construction, health care and information technology. This is the fifth round of awards from the Career Academy Incentive Fund since the fund was established in 2019. Applications for a sixth round of funding will open next spring. More information on the fund is available on the Iowa Department of Education’s website.