Workforce Development Program Fact Sheet

-- Northwestern University and the City of Evanston are launching the Workforce Development Program, a groundbreaking new partnership to help provide jobs for Evanston residents through construction and renovation projects on campus.

--Northwestern is committing to spend at least $1 million a year with local businesses and aims to provide construction industry jobs on campus annually to 25 Evanston residents. These will be both employment and apprenticeship opportunities.

--This is a first-of-its kind partnership between the City and the University. It will help Evanston residents qualify for and attain employment on campus construction, renovation and maintenance projects.

--Much of the new program is aimed at skilled trades for workers on construction projects at the University but there are other jobs (professional, administrative, non-skilled, etc.) that could be filled by residents too.

--Not only does the program connect Evanston residents with employment opportunities within the community, it also builds a network of qualified, talented workers to fill these positions for years to come.

--Both the City and the University are proud of the new partnership and its contribution to helping maintain Evanston as a wonderful place to live, work and learn. Both are committed to cooperative work with each other and with other community partners.

--The program will ramp up in a pilot phase this summer/fall when construction on major projects begins.

--Residents will be invited to fill out an application to qualify for the program. Potential candidates will be vetted by City staffers to determine their eligibility.

--Northwestern contractors will be required to demonstrate their efforts to achieve a high level of participation of Evanston workers throughout the life of their contracts.

-- The City will provide a pool of qualified Evanston residents to Northwestern, which will work with its contractors and subcontractors to ensure that residents are employed on appropriate construction projects to the extent possible.

--Northwestern’s Department of Facilities Management will work with the City and outside contractors to make this program a reality.

--The University will also commit to hiring -- to the extent possible, and within University guidelines -- qualified Evanston residents for these positions.

--In the coming weeks, the City of Evanston will announce an open call for community members who are interested in joining the Workforce Development Program. Residents will be invited to fill out an application to qualify.

--The City and the University will cooperate in holding a periodic job fair for Evanston residents.

-Residents who are interested should join the City’s Workforce Development email list at www.cityofevanston.org/workforce -- Or call 3-1-1.

--More than 1,700 Evanston residents work on Northwestern’s Evanston campus, and another 500 work on the University’s campus in Chicago.

--Northwestern has a total economic impact on Evanston of about $160 million a year.

For more information from the City, please contact Patrick Deignan at (847) 448-8234 or pdeignan@cityofevanston.org.