GPEDC | Regional Workforce Solutions
Training & Apprenticeships
Greater Peoria has multiple partners that provide solutions for employers to take advantage of Apprenticeship programs, connect with upskilled individuals, and incorporate incumbent workers and OTJ training to meet their workforce needs and remain successful.
Registered Apprenticeships
This SkillsUSA program implements the proven model that improves college and career readiness, creates employment opportunities, addresses equity in underserved communities, and expands partnerships between the workforce system, education, and business. SkillsUSA Illinois, a certified U.S. Department of Labor Apprenticeship Intermediary, facilitates their Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) process by connecting employers and schools to validate training, create apprenticeship opportunities, and then support apprentices from program start to finish. This opportunity will allow SkillsUSA Illinois to provide apprenticeships in high-growth industries to eligible students at current chapters, focusing on high school juniors and seniors and first-year students in college to support workforce development and economic growth.
Custom Business Solutions
Illinois Central College can help your company succeed, and your employees get the development they need for your team to stay competitive with customized business solutions. By 2025, more than half of employees will need significant reskilling or upskilling; ICC can provide curated professional development programs or customize training to fit your teams' specific needs and deliver the training in person, online, or in a hybrid setting. They have supported businesses in virtually every industry, including OSF, Morton Industries, Centers for Prevention of Abuse, Snygenta, Connor Co., Altorfer, and more!
SkillBridge Program
The Department of Defense's SkillBridge program allows servicemembers to gain valuable civilian work experience through specific industry training, apprenticeships, or internships during the last 180 days of service. DOD SkillBridge connects transitioning service members with industry partners in real-world job experiences.
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SkillBridge is an excellent way to support servicemembers while actively attracting highly skilled individuals to consider Greater Peoria for their home after service. Greater Peoria is an attractive destination for retiring servicemembers due to our proximity to metro amenities and the presence of the Air National Guard base, which can provide an opportunity to reenlist in a part-time capacity to continue service.
IT Workforce Accelerator
The IT Workforce Accelerator allows your employees to earn industry-recognized credentials in high-demand IT fields at no cost. Most programs range from two days to twelve months, with many programs offered bootcamp-style. A grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration pays tuition and books. Among the eligibility requirements, participants must live in Central Illinois or work for a Central Illinois company. Participants may also qualify for additional support services.
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This program is a great resource for Greater Peoria and is the product of collaboration between Illinois Central College, Eureka College, and Bradley University. If you have employees with potential for promotion into IT-focused roles or want your employees to be ready for a more tech-centric future of work, get connected with the Accelerator staff today and find the right programs for your employment needs.
Corporate Education
Illinois Central College offers corporate training and credentials for personalized professional growth as well as upskilling teams for a wide range of topics, including:
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Accounting & Finance
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Business & Management
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Career & Hospitality
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Human Resources
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Information Technology / Networking
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Project Management
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Professional Development
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Interpersonal Skills
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Programming/Web/Software Development
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Information Security
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Much, much more!
Talent Pipeline Management
The Greater Peoria Economic Development Council, in partnership with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is facilitating a series of industry collaboratives to drive the Talent Pipeline Management framework to address workforce shortages for critical roles. Currently, the region is engaged in TPM for Manufacturing & Logistics, the employer-led collaborative is made up for 25+ employers, from small machine shops to Fortune 50 Global Enterprises, and has identified the top 5 in-demand roles for the industry and now that data is being used to support scaling of programs in K12 and post-secondary partners to continue to meet the region's hiring needs.
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Our region is also exploring TPM collaboratives in Healthcare, IT, AgTech, and First Responders.
Skilled Trades (WCIBCT)
Are you looking for a new and exciting career, that embraces worker dignity and respectable wages?
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Look no further than the organized construction industry.
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Training is an essential part of your career. The organized construction industry offers opportunities to earn while you learn. That means when you begin your apprenticeship, you will be paid to learn your trade skills. Apprenticeship programs last up to five years, and during that time, you are becoming proficient in your chosen craft - through classroom training, job shadowing, and job site training, you will learn all you need for a rewarding lifelong career.
Teacher Externships
Externships are a critical link between the context of industry and the context of a classroom. This experience will provide educators with relevant, real-world professional learning through an innovative collaboration. Externship programs create lasting partnerships between workplaces and local schools, which, as a result, give students real-world career information about career possibilities locally. Teachers in Greater Peoria have extensive opportunities to experience and use the latest real-world applications of STEM disciplines to inform their teaching practices better and prepare students to enter the STEM talent pipeline after high school.
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These programs are particularly valuable in Greater Peoria, where STEM roles in Healthcare, Manufacturing, IT, Innovation, and AgTech make up many career pathways for students.
Workplace Training
AAIM's employee training courses can help you identify and fill talent gaps to improve results actionably. As the most experienced resource for training in the HR landscape, AAIM trains more than 15,000 people every year, partnering with businesses who know that investing in their employees is the best way to improve results. AAIM has been in the training world since 1898, and they design training programs that provide individuals with a foundation for the three components we all need to succeed: Purpose, Communication, and Development.
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With AAIM's flexible workplace training courses, you invest in the people who give your business a competitive edge and improved results: employees who aim to achieve purpose, receive timely communication and feedback, and long to grow and develop in their roles.
ApprenticeshipIllinois
Apprenticeships are an industry-driven, high-quality career pathway in which employers develop and prepare their future workforce, and individuals obtain paid work experience, earn wages, and receive classroom instruction. Some highlights of Apprenticeship Illinois:
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20,000+ Active Apprentices in Illinois
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430+ Active Programs with 1,650+ Employers Engaged
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Tax Credits Available: Up to $5,000 For Each Qualified Apprentice
Benefits of Apprenticeships:
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Skilled Workforce
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Improve Productivity
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Reduce Turnover
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Build Opportunities
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Customizable Training
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Retain Workers
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Diversity
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Potential Funding
Ready2 (PreApprenticeship)
SkillsUSA Illinois Ready2 is a pre-apprenticeship program focused on providing opportunities to prepare members to become registered apprentices with employers within the SkillsUSA Partner Network. The goal of this program is to help remove any barriers to entering the workforce upon graduation. This program is supported by business and industry partners statewide who have a vested interest in seeing members succeed.
​Architecture & Construction
This program ensures that members are prepared with the skills to succeed who are currently enrolled in building trades and carpentry training programs. Through this program, members earn four different credentials including: First Aid/CPR, NCCER Core Certification, OSHA-10, and SkillsUSA Career Essential and are afforded opportunities to visit employer and work sites as well as meet and interview with local contractors.
More Industries Coming Soon!
Incumbent Worker Training
Implementing new equipment, service lines, and processes is exciting for any business, large or small. But training an entire team on a new system often results in lost time, decreased profit margins, and headaches for management. Through CareerLink's Incumbent Worker Training program, employers can develop their workforce while increasing company competitiveness, improving productivity, creating new revenue streams, and improving the retention of valued employees.
Workforce training programs are a great way to keep your employees' skills up-to-date and your company moving forward. Many companies in Greater Peoria have taken advantage of this incredible training and development opportunity.
Visit the CareerLink website to learn more about this program and to get in touch with the team to get started on building the right solution for your business needs.
On-The-Job Training
CareerLink's OJT training program allows employers to focus on hiring candidates that are the right fit for the specific job and company culture. This program links employers with useful, relevant, and timely information that provides participating employees with the resources they need to succeed. When employees succeed, their employer does as well!
Up to 75% of training costs can be covered through the CareerLink OJT training program during a customized training period, allowing employers to focus on growth, rather than the tedium of onboarding.
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Explore the CareerLink website to learn how on-the-job training can help develop a loyal, efficient, and skilled workforce.
Apprenticeship Assistance
CareerLink offers employers of WIOA-eligible employees the opportunity to receive valuable apprenticeship assistance. Apprenticeship is a useful worker training model that pairs On-The-Job Training with targeted classroom instruction. Workers alternate between classroom and hands-on training to advance their skills, while employers can benefit from an increasingly talented workforce.
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CareerLink can help facilitate apprenticeship programs that meet your business needs and provide wraparound services for the apprentice to ensure continued success. The team has helped launch apprenticeships for employers, large and small, in Manufacturing, Healthcare, Construction, Transportation, Information Technology, and more.
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Visit the CareerLink website to learn more about this support and to get started on building an apprenticeship program for your critical roles.