Westward expansion

St. Charles Community College recently announced its plans to build a new campus near the David Hoekel I-70 Interchange

By Brett Auten

A geyser of opportunity and development will soon be flowing in western St. Charles County.

St. Charles Community College recently announced its plans to build a new campus near the David Hoekel I-70 Interchange. The first building on the 55-acre campus will be the 48,000 square-foot Regional Workforce Innovation Center.

College officials say it will be the premier technical training and education center within the Greater St. Louis Region.

John Wiemann is the Vice President of Workforce and Strategic Initiatives at the school, which opened its doors in Cottleville in 1987.

“Expanding to the western portion of the county will not only help St. Charles, but Warren, Lincoln, Pike, Montgomery, and Callaway Counties,” Wiemann said. “That is one of the reasons why we named it ‘regional.’”

The Innovation Center will be future-focused on modernization and meeting the needs of business and industry. The goal is to foster and prepare the region’s workforce for jobs in technology, advanced manufacturing, robotics, sustainable energy, healthcare and more.

“Right now, the demand from the business community is in advanced manufacturing and all of the skill trades,” Weimann said. “But we are also planning for down the road. There will also be 15,000 square feet dedicated for future technologies. We want to make sure we leave some space for what's next.”

Among the new programs SCC will introduce are: battery technology, electric and autonomous vehicles, renewable wind and solar energy, high-tech processes and robotics.

Also, the college will have a Make-it Center lab where students in middle and high school can experience and explore how a 3-D printer works and robotics work. An introduction to manufacturing technologies and other skilled trades will be available for students with options to earn associate degrees and certificates.

Learning is enhanced by partnerships with local employers like GM. St. Charles Community College was selected in February by the American Association of Community Colleges as one of seven colleges to receive grant funding from GM to help grow community college advanced manufacturing programs.

Through this grant, the college can further study needs for technical training and help meet the growing demand for job-ready employees in advanced manufacturing. In not only the automotive industry, but manufacturing technology in general is becoming more advanced, and it is increasingly important to equip the current and future workforce with the skills and training they need to succeed in modern manufacturing careers.

“The days of the dirty, noisy factory are kind of going by the wayside,” Wiemann said. “They are going to look to us to also plan for future jobs.” The goal is to have courses start there in the fall of 2025.

The Innovation Center is funded by the Proposition Community College bond program and grants received from the state.

“We take seriously our role in helping meet Governor Parson’s priority for workforce development and education,” Barbara Kavalier, Ph.D., SCC president said. “His focus on projects that meet the needs of business and industry provided the impetus to SCC to develop a business plan for the Center. We appreciate his support in providing additional funding through the American Rescue Plan and the MoExcels Workforce Initiative.”

By Brett Auten