The Springfield Project is gearing up to launch a new apprenticeship program after being awarded state grant funding.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity selected The Springfield Project as one of 39 programs across the state to receive funding as part of an expansion of the Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program. The Springfield Project will receive $325,000 to build out its own pre-apprenticeship program based out of its CAP (Community Access Project) 1908 incubator space in the South Town neighborhood.
The program will provide training and support to young people interested in gaining access to apprenticeship programs in the construction and building trades.
“The program will be focused on recruiting, retaining and training under-represented individuals 18 years old and older who are interested in applying for apprenticeships,” said Dominic Watson, executive director of The Springfield Project.
The Springfield Project plans to accept students for two cohorts of the apprenticeship program, one starting in the spring and one in late summer. The program, which will use the NC3 training program through the National Coalition of Certification Centers, will accept up to 30 individuals its first year, Watson said. The new program will be supported by the Central Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council.
Program participants will receive a stipend and other support services to help them enter the construction industry.
“I think anytime we can give increased access to career paths outside the traditional ones these individuals see on a daily basis, it’s a win,” Watson said. “This will be another pathway to opportunity.”
To assist with the new program, The Springfield Project currently is interviewing candidates for a workforce success coordinator. Part of this new role’s responsibilities will be recruiting candidates for the apprenticeship program and helping program graduates find placement with the various trade organizations in town. The new hire will bring the total full-time employees at The Springfield Project to four.
In addition, the organization plans to hire a part-time instructor to work specifically on curriculum for the apprenticeship program.
Watson said the apprenticeship program builds on The Springfield Project’s ongoing commitment to providing access to career pathways for youth in the community. Close to 70 young people already have gone through the organization’s career and college preparedness program. The Springfield Project is seeking additional funding that would allow the number of participants in that program to increase by 200 in the next two to three years, Watson said.
The Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program launched in 2021, and the DCEO awarded more than $17 million statewide in this latest round of grants.