Stadelman: $900,000 for local workforce training is "strategic investment"

In what State Senator Steve Stadelman calls a “strategic investment so that our local workforce is ready to take jobs that available right now,” two Rockford foundations are receiving $900,000 in state funds to support apprenticeships for women and people of color in the construction and building trades.

The grants are being awarded as part of a $13 million release to 30 recipients statewide under the Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program, established in 2021 to help develop a qualified talent pipeline of diverse candidates in construction and the building trades. Awaken Foundation is receiving $500,000 while $400,000 is headed for Education Design Development and Research Corporation (EDDR) Foundation.

"Apprenticeships lead to stable construction careers with good wages -- and these grants help historically underserved communities get on that pathway,” Stadelman said.

Awaken Foundation educates and trains people as young as 16 who have been negatively affected by generational poverty. Established in 2016 as an “low-profit” L3C company, Awaken Foundation also offers pre-apprenticeships in hospitality, landscaping and culinary arts. Chicago-based EDDR, with training centers in Rockford and Freeport, provides customized workforce development to fill open positions with local employers.

Illinois Works participants attend tuition-free and receive a stipend and other supportive, barrier-reduction services. Pre-apprentices earn industry-aligned certifications to help qualify them to continue their education and training in registered apprenticeships in one of the building trades.

People interested in an Illinois Works pre-apprenticeship can request applicaton material on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity website by clicking on the logo below:

Lower-income homebuyers should check out Opening Doors program for downpayment help: Stadelman

Illinois is pumping an additional $8 million into its Opening Doors/Abriendo Puertas program to help working-class families and underrepresented communities of color buy homes, according to State Senator Steve Stadelman.

Opening Doors provides $6,000 in forgivable assistance for down payment and closing costs to lower-income borrowers and households of color. Interested homeowners can find more information and a list of participating lenders at www.ihdamortgage.org.

Since the program’s launch in 2020, Opening Doors has helped close the homeownership gap for more than 7,100 first-time and repeat buyers including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients, who pay hundreds of millions in federal, state and local taxes yet struggle to find mortgage lenders who will work with them.

Under the program, the Illinois Housing Development Authority 30-year, first-position mortgages with fixed interest rates and $6,000 in down payment or closing cost assistance. The assistance is forgiven after five years and no monthly payment is due from the borrower.

Borrowers must meet eligibility requirements and complete the IHDA homebuyer education course.