EVES Manufacturing Training Academy
The Electric Vehicle – Energy Storage (EVES) Manufacturing Training Academy (MTA) will feature certificates and degrees in Electric Vehicle (EV) and Energy Storage (ES) Technology and will deliver specialized skill training to prepare individuals for employment in two career pathways: 1) Electric Vehicle, including advanced manufacturing, installation, final assembly, inspection, diagnosis, service, and repair, and 2) Energy Storage, including maintenance and support of second-life energy storage (battery) systems in residential, commercial, and utility scale applications.
The Electric Vehicle program will include an intensive upskill Electric Vehicle Technology Certificate for individuals with prior traditional automotive training and experience. The Energy Storage program will include short-term, stackable certificates—potentially the first energy storage certificates of their kind in Illinois.
- The EVES MTA will be physically located in the Student Commons Building (SCB) on the Heartland Community College campus in Normal, Illinois.
The EVES Manufacturing Training Academy building addition to the north end of SCB will add 6,278 square feet of laboratory, training, and storage space for the Electric Vehicle and Energy Storage Technology training programs.
The above image is the street level view of the existing site location on the north end of the Student Commons Building (SCB) for the EVES Manufacturing Training Academy building addition.
The above image is an exterior view rendering of the new EVES Manufacturing Training Academy building addition, which will house the laboratory, training, and storage space for the Electric Vehicle and Energy Storage Technology training programs.
- Heartland Community College designed the Electric Vehicle-Energy Storage (EVES) Manufacturing Training Academy to meet regional demand for a skilled workforce in the advanced manufacturing and green energy sectors. The EVES MTA is a partnership with electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian and other regional manufacturing, economic development, and education partners. Rivian will have 1,800 employees by its June production launch and 2,500 by the end of 2021 with the majority requiring some degree of specialized EV-ES training.
- More information is coming. Heartland and employer partners will be releasing specific details, timelines, and application procedures in the coming weeks. Please fill out the information request form to be contacted as more information is released.
Aerial view of the Electric Vehicle – Energy Storage Manufacturing Training Academy with the area highlighted in blue planned for Manufacturing Training Academy expansion to include aligned training in advanced robotics, clean manufacturing, and renewable energy. Electric Vehicle – Energy Storage is but one portion of a larger vision for an over-all state of the art Manufacturing Training Academy located on Heartland’s campus. Heartland plans to expand the MTA into the area shaded blue in the aerial view below of the HCC campus to meet additional demand for highly trained individuals in the aligned areas of advanced robotics, clean manufacturing, and renewable energy. The expanded area will also incorporate Heartland’s Flexible Learning for Industrial Technology Education (FLITE) project, which was recently awarded $296,356.00 in funding by the National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education Program.
The FLITE project will demonstrate an innovative hybrid model for industrial technology education that employs an open manufacturing lab and flexible delivery of the curriculum. Courses will be designed to offer students the opportunity to learn theory in different settings -- such as online or hybrid formats -- and then help them develop and practice the hands-on skills they’ll need for the workforce. Once the project is completed, students and employers will be able to take advantage of courses offered through the FLITE lab each semester rather than waiting for the course catalog to match their schedule.
Once the facility is completed and programs are fully launched, Heartland projects 58 annual completions at the certificate or AAS level and a five-year total of 360 students completing at least one EVES course as part of a program or though upskilling.
The current target date for fully launched programs with a completed facility is January of 2023.
Enrollment for the Electric Vehicle Technology Associate of Applied Science and Electric Vehicle Technology Certificate programs is targeted for the Fall semester of 2021. Enrollment in the Energy Storage Certificate program will begin by Spring semester of 2023.
Programs are pending approval by the Heartland Community College Board of Trustees, the Illinois Community College Board, and Illinois Board of Higher Education.
We anticipate a total of 2-3 full time positions to be added at HCC by January 2023. One full-time position will be posted immediately with others added as the programs are to be fully launched.
We anticipate approximately 70 construction jobs to be contracted related to the building of the facility.
Preconstruction activities are expected to last from April 2021 through March 2022.
Construction activities are projected to occur from April 2022 through December 2022 with move-in completed by January 2023.
The State of Illinois through the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity awarded Heartland Community College a capital grant of $7,495,319 to fund the construction of the EVES facility addition to house the new EVES Manufacturing Training Academy.
Heartland Community College and employer partners project contributing $1.5M in leveraged funds to cover curriculum development, personnel, equipment, wrap-around student supports, and additional expenses.
The EVES MTA is a first-of-its-kind program to allow Heartland Community College to provide cutting-edge training programs not otherwise widely available at downstate community colleges in order to develop new talent for higher paying jobs of the future, boost retention of manufacturers in downstate communities, and attract more investment by manufacturing companies throughout Illinois.
The Manufacturing Training Academy is part of the economic vision for growth and equity put forward by the Governor’s 5-year economic plan, which offers a blueprint for growth among the state’s strongest and highest growth potential sectors – including manufacturing.
Between now and Spring 2023, Heartland’s goal is to work with employer partners and other Illinois community colleges to develop a flexible delivery format with program participants completing coursework online and hands-on training and labs completed in-person at participating service centers.
Replicating regionally relevant components of this flexible delivery model will allow EVES participants living outside Heartland’s district or Illinois to enroll in the program, complete the coursework online, and complete associated hands-on training through regional EVES employer partners.