Governor JB Pritzker Directs $200 Million for Illinois Community College Advanced Manufacturing Academies

PEORIA, Ill. — Governor JB Pritzker and Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) Executive Director Brian Durham announced on Monday the distribution of $200 million in state capital workforce development grants through the Rebuild Illinois program to construct and tool eight specialized Advanced Manufacturing and Robotics Training Academies across regional community colleges in Chicago, Peoria, Rockford, Decatur, and the Metro East.

The investment equips community college campuses with commercial-grade 5-axis CNC milling centers, industrial robotic welding arms, automated optical inspection scanners, and high-voltage electric vehicle battery maintenance labs, providing free tuition and certified training for more than 8,000 students and mid-career workers annually.

Preparing Illinois Workers for High-Wage Advanced Industrial Careers Illinois manufacturers in the automotive, aerospace, heavy machinery, and clean tech sectors face acute shortages of certified mechatronics technicians, robotic programmers, and precision machinists as older workers retire and factories adopt automated Industry 4.0 technology.

"Illinois is an industrial powerhouse, and our greatest strength has always been our hardworking, highly skilled workforce," Governor Pritzker said during an announcement at Illinois Central College in East Peoria. "Manufacturing jobs today are high-tech, high-wage careers that require advanced skills in robotics, coding, and precision engineering. This $200 million investment builds cutting-edge training academies across our community colleges, ensuring every Illinois student has a direct, debt-free pathway to a six-figure manufacturing career."

Community College Training Hubs Funded Key campus allocations include:

• Illinois Central College (Peoria): $35 million for the Caterpillar Advanced Mechatronics and Heavy Machinery Center.
• City Colleges of Chicago (Richard J. Daley College): $30 million for an automated logistics and robotic welding academy.
• Rock Valley College (Rockford): $28 million for aerospace precision machining and composite fabrication labs.
• Richland Community College (Decatur): $25 million for bioprocessing and industrial fermentation training.
• Four additional regional colleges receiving between $18 million and $22 million.

Industrial manufacturing CEOs, labor union leaders, and community college presidents praised the governor's targeted workforce investment, pointing out that turn-key training pipelines make Illinois the premier destination for manufacturing expansion.