WALMART TO DONATE CHATHAM JOB TRAINING FACILITY TO CHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE TO BENEFIT THE SOUTH SIDE
WALMART TO DONATE CHATHAM JOB TRAINING FACILITY
TO CHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE TO BENEFIT THE SOUTH SIDE
CHICAGO, IL (June 24, 2024) – Today, Walmart announced the company plans to donate its 15,000+-square-foot Walmart Academy job training facility in the Chatham community to the Chicago Urban League. The donation will be final once the property is separated from a larger parcel and closing conditions are satisfied.
With this agreed upon donation, the Chicago Urban League will be able to expand its vision and current work through the organization’s Workforce Development Center and its Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation into another area of Chicago’s South Side. The facility will be reopened as the Chicago Urban League Empowerment Center after the donation is finalized.
“We are profoundly grateful to Walmart for this facility, which is one of the most significant donations in the organization’s history,” said Karen Freeman-Wilson, President & CEO of the Chicago Urban League. “In 2023, our workforce and entrepreneurship programs combined served more than 6,300 job seekers and business owners. The size and location of this facility will make training classes, customized workshops, and related events more accessible and open to even more individuals than before.”
Focused on comprehensive and holistic community development, this facility will amplify two of the organization’s key programs:
The Workforce Development Center aims to increase personal economic freedom and stability through expanding the Career Pathways Programs. The new facility will aid in offering training in highly sought-after jobs including Solar Installer, Health information and Pharmacy Tech, HVAC Training and Supply Chain management.
The Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation helps Black entrepreneurs launch, grow, and sustain businesses through existing and new classes including nextONE, nextSTARTUP, nextDEAL, nextLEVELEXCHANGE, Business Coaching and Technical Assistance.
The donation propels the Chicago Urban League to further help Black entrepreneurs and also creates a pipeline of prepared, well-qualified, workforce-ready individuals to secure employment in the region’s high-growth and emerging industries. The donation includes the state-of-the-art classroom and meeting facility, administrative furniture and training equipment, including HVAC (Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning) and dental equipment. The facility will enable the Chicago Urban League to offer workforce training in new areas, including dental hygiene, artificial intelligence (AI), electronic vehicle (EV) infrastructure, and electrification technology. It will also house business development classes for entrepreneurs and provide new meeting space to bring together small business owners.
“The Chicago Urban League has been a proven leader in program development and advocacy that creates a positive impact on Chicago communities,” said Adonis Clark, Regional Vice President, Walmart. “Walmart has worked and collaborated with the Chicago Urban League for more than 20 years and we are proud to support their aspirations to develop strong leaders and entrepreneurs.”
Walmart met with community organizations and leaders to understand their needs and proposed plans for the community space and set the criteria for this donation. Walmart was pleased to see robust community interest and creative ideas presented for the reimagining of this facility. Managed by a diverse selection committee, each submission went through several rounds of reviews and interviews to determine the ideal vision and capacity to leverage the space and equipment.
Over the last five years, the Chicago Urban League has provided workforce development services to more than 600 Chatham residents. Having a direct presence in Chatham will allow the organization to serve even more.
According to Freeman-Wilson, “This facility’s location is key to helping the Chicago Urban League better reach our neighbors throughout the South Side. In addition to providing more space for workforce and entrepreneurship training, it will allow us to comfortably accommodate many more community residents for Urban League events related to the Empowerment Center.”
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