Advanced Technology Center Coming Soon

STACKABLE SKILLS ACCELERATE STUDENTS

FOR MANUFACTURING JOBS

Advanced Technology Center opens Fall 2022

When the state-of-the-art Advanced Technology Center (ATC) opens its doors in 2022, College of Lake County students can proceed with sharpening their skills to earn the short- and long-term credentials needed to fill the high-skill, high-wage and in-demand workforce jobs of the Lake County manufacturing and technology sector.

“One in seven workers in Lake County is employed in the manufacturing sector,” said CLC Vice President of Community and Workforce Partnerships Dr. Ali O’Brien. “When completed, the center promises to supply area industry with a steady, highly trained stream of local talent that also can have an impact on economic development by helping attract, retain, and grow manufacturers in the area.”

As the second largest manufacturing county in Illinois, Lake County is an economic powerhouse, outputting $35.7 billion in goods a year. This new facility will keep the region at the forefront of modern, global manufacturing by delivering industry-responsive career pathways for students that align with the economic-development needs of the area’s manufacturing and technology sectors.

With the backing of community partners, foresighted business leaders and industry visionaries, CLC soon will offer its students and local employers an unparalleled technology center complete with knowledgeable faculty to provide hands-on training and instruction with the industry’s latest equipment and technology. Best of all, this innovation resource will be local, affordable and accessible to all.

Recognizing the need to act, in December 2020 the college purchased a 142,000-square-foot former big-box store in Gurnee to house the ATC. Its adaptive-use design provides for tailored program spaces for automation, robotics, mechatronics, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, computerized numeric control (CNC) machining, advanced manufacturing, industrial maintenance and welding/fabrication.

“The ATC will offer students industry certifications embedded in hands-on classes with engaging, detailed and guided instruction,” said Dean of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences Dr. Richard Ammon. “Most of the jobs these graduates will go into come with familysustaining wages well above minimum wage. Some of our graduates in mechatronics, with the program’s one-year certificate, make more than people coming out of school with bachelor’s degrees. Our career pathway will train students to get into the workforce quickly, then allow them to come back to the college and continue to advance their knowledge, skills and ultimately value to companies.”

Once completed, students will be well prepared for further education or, critically, eligible for immediate employment. Those receiving an Associate in Applied Science degree can advance their careers by transferring to a four-year college or university to work toward a bachelor’s degree.

Continuing education for employees

The acceleration of change in the manufacturing industry requires current employees to keep their skillsets up to date. At the same time, the local economy thrives when its residents have meaningful and challenging work that provides them with a promising career and the ability to advance in their profession.

The ATC offers classes for our traditional students and local employees both. With easy access to short-term, industry-specific training through intensive one-to-eight-week courses in a state-of-the-art facility, industry will prosper and grow and so will their employees.