John Wood Community College Among Two Illinois Colleges to Receive Grant

Two Illinois colleges will share in a $29 million federal grant to retrain unemployed workers for high-skill jobs in transportation, distribution and logistics.

Lewis and Clark Community College in Godfrey will lead a consortium of nine colleges in eight Mississippi River states with the goal of placing people in jobs and boosting economic development.

Lewis and Clark will receive $4.9 million, while John Wood Community College in Quincy will receive $2.1 million. Other colleges receiving grant money are in Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

Lewis and Clark expects to train 300 people in welding, auto tech, logistics, truck driving and other jobs over the next three years.

John Wood will focus on jobs in the local logistics industry, including warehouse technicians, computer information specialists and supply-chain managers.