The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges awarded nearly $5 million in federal CARES Act dollars to community and technical colleges across the state as they work to restore workforce-related programs affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The one-time grants come from the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief funds provided by the CARES Act. Skagit Valley College will receive $189,510. Workforce programs, in which 48 percent of the community and technical college system’s approximately 356,000 students were enrolled in the 2019-20 school year, were significantly disrupted in the spring quarter by the COVID-19 pandemic and measures to stop its spread. These programs require a hands-on component, so measures like physical distancing and lab and classroom capacity impacted the number of students who could participate at any one time.