JARC returns to the West Side after year-long hiatus.
After unexpectedly losing their Austin space in August of 2019, Jane Addams Resource Corporation (JARC) has officially reopened its West Side Training Center. The new space is located inside of Freedman Seating Company, a long-time employer partner of JARC.
“We’re able to take advantage of the services that JARC offers and come away with workers that are ready to go, skilled and trained, so it’s been a win-win for JARC and for us,” said Craig Freedman, CEO, Freedman Seating.
The new West Side location offers CNC Fast Track, Welding Fast Track, the Manufacturing Bridge program and will soon roll out two new programs: 3-D Printing and Mechanical Assembly. This will allow improved access to high-quality skills training to West Side community residents with barriers to employment. One in four Austin residents are currently unemployed, and facing major barriers to employment such as criminal records due to over-policing in the neighborhood, and limited access to public transportation.
The Austin program began in 2017, after JARC realized many of their trainees were coming from the West Side of Chicago. Community partners Austin Coming Together, Manufacturing Renaissance, and the Westside Health Authority work with JARC to identify adults within the West Side neighborhoods of Chicago that could benefit from a career in manufacturing. These partners have played a huge role in recruiting participants and driving resources into the program.
“We really want to be the premier manufacturing training provider in the Austin Neighborhood,” said Regan Brewer, President, Jane Addams Resource Corporation. “That’s why we have positioned ourselves with some of these groups, to really plant our foot here and have a big presence on the West Side.”
For anyone interested in the programs, there are application sessions every Wednesday at 9am and 4pm.