Homewood-Flossmoor High School students may have new career opportunities later this decade as District 233 joins with five other high school districts, Prairie State College and the SPEED Cooperative in forming the South Career and Technical Education Center.
Johnnie Thomas, superintendent of Rich Township District 227, made a presentation on the career center to the District 233 board at its June 21 meeting. Thomas, who is spearheading the initiative, said the plans have been in the works “for almost two years.” He said the project has gone through an initial review by the Illinois State Board of Education and ISBE “recognizes us as being able to provide these services.”
“We’re really excited about the initiative,” Thomas said. “We’re really excited about the leadership H-F has provided and will continue to provide in the future.” Outgoing Superintendent Von Mansfield has supported the project. He said there was a regional training center in the 1990s, but it failed to flourish.
The career center would be built on the site of Rich East High School in Park Forest. District 227 closed the school in 2021. The building would be demolished and the district would donate the 50-acre site. Thomas said cost estimates for a new, specially designed building are between $92 and $100 million. He said the group is looking for public/private and federal dollars.
“We’re trying to bring a service back to this community that hasn’t been in this community for over 30 years,” Thomas said. “There hasn’t been a new facility built in the state of Illinois in over 45 years. We always talk about career development and bringing the new age, a new work force to our community, this is our attempt at trying to address that need.”
The career center would draw from a 10,000-student population served by H-F District 223, Rich Township District 227, Crete-Monee District 201-U, Bloom Township District 206, Thornton-Fractional District 215, Southland College Prep and the SPEED Cooperative. Prairie State College is also involved with the project.
Thomas said at any one time, the career center would serve 600 students during the day, and it would be open evenings to adult learners interested in learning a trade.
H-F has a strong Career and Technical Education Department offering students courses in four specialties areas:
- Business and Technology with courses in computers, entrepreneurship and management, accounting, marketing and investing.
- Industrial Technology with courses in automotive technology, drafting and design, manufacturing technology and networking systems.
- Family and Consumer Sciences with courses in child development, culinary, interior design and apparel and textiles.
- Engineering with courses under the Project Lead the Way umbrella.
Thomas spelled out seven programs for the career center – aviation training for future pilots, construction trades, information technology, logistics and supply chain, manufacturing trades, public safety and urban agriculture.
“It’s a real impact and something we believe is going to enhance our community,” Thomas said. “It’s going to give us the workforce of the future.”