2026 Pinnacle Award for Workforce Development Nomination

DISCLAIMER

This nomination information will be shared with other states on the Workforce Innovation Awards Nominations website. This public website contains Innovation Award nominations from previous years and indexes them by topic as a shared resource for all states.

Description

The Pinnacle Award for Workforce Development honors a state workforce agency, or partnership involving a state workforce agency, for an innovative workforce project, strategy or initiative that involves assisting certain or all customers with career services (career exploration and/or job search assistance) and/or the attainment of in-demand skills and credentials, and which results in significant contributions towards the achievement of opportunity for customers.

Nominations should be for projects, strategies, or initiatives that have been implemented within the past few years.

Criteria (choose one as primary)

Innovative Set of Services: addresses customer goals and barriers, builds on partnerships, leverages funding, achieves successful outcomes
Innovative Service Delivery: uses customer-centered design, behavioral insights, process improvement strategies or other methods to review, plan, execute and evaluate processes/methods with improved service integration and service delivery, and better outcomes for customers
National Impact: demonstrates a commitment to sharing its insights, including exhibiting evidence-based practices that can be replicated, with implications for other states and national policymakers

Eligible Nominees

The state workforce agency or a partnership or initiative involving the state workforce agency must be named as the nominee of the award. The award may recognize specific individuals or agencies within the nomination, such as, but not limited to: the governor, elected official, state administrator, state employment and training director, state staff member(s), business owner or representative, workforce partner, or advocacy group.

Nomination Requirements

Must be submitted by 5:00 pm ET, December 12, 2025
Submit a completed award nomination;
Contain answers to the questions listed on the nomination form within the prescribed word limit;
Include a statement of approval from the agency administrator; and,
Be the single nomination for that state in this category.

Selection Process

The NASWA Employment and Training Committee’s Awards Subcommittee will review all nominations and recommend the recipient to the Chair of the Committee who will approve the selection.