McHenry County College preps students for careers in innovation, technology at soon-to-open Foglia Center

With construction of the Foglia Center for Advanced Technology and Innovation at McHenry County College expected to finish before the fall semester, enrollment for the classes is underway.

Students and the public were able to explore the programs and career opportunities the center will provide at an open house Wednesday. Hard-hat tours showed the progress of the building, which is expected to be completed in late August or early September, MCC Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Development Christina Haggerty said.

Programs available in the Foglia CATI include Architectural and Engineering Design Technology; Automation, Robotics and Mechatronics; Construction Management; Engineering Technology; Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning; Industrial Maintenance; Industrial Management and Technology; Precision Machining; and Welding and Fabrication.

“Many people are curious about careers in the trades, and MCC is proud to offer these training programs close to home and at an affordable cost,” MCC Assistant Vice President of Enrollment Services Amy Carzoli said in a news release. “If you enjoy solving problems or working with your hands but you’re unsure how that could translate to a career, this is the perfect event for you. It’s also great for those who are looking to add another skillset or advance in their current job.”

The programs offer certificates that students can stack onto an associate’s degree. The college aims to expose students to many different industries for those who know they want to work with their hands but are unsure of exactly what to do, MCC Precision Machining Instructor Tom Pleuger said.

“A lot of people don’t think of how big the industry is,” he said. “It’s exciting because of the variety of things in the area you can go into.”

Advanced technologies in geothermal systems, robotics and welding were on display at the open house. A robotic arm programmed to pick up and drop items onto an assembly line was demonstrated, a piece of equipment that can cost about $30,000, MCC Manufacturing Instructor Jason Boring said.

“We try to make this a grassroots program and do as much as we can in-house as possible,” he said. “Our students were able to build their own robotic arm for $1,500.”

The state-of-the-art building, which broke ground in 2022, will have 45,000 square feet of classroom and laboratory space, a community maker space and a small business incubator.

It will contain more than 400 students across its programs and have an estimated 70 new graduates per year, according to a previous MCC news release. Some classes are already filling up and Pleuger expects programs to continue to grow over time, he said.

The project’s $22 million total will be mostly funded by the state, with the state of Illinois covering $15.8 million from Rebuild Illinois capital plan funds. About $2.2 million was donated from the Foglia Family Foundation and the remainder will come from McHenry County College.

McHenry County also contributed $1.69 million of federal COVID-19 relief money toward MCC’s state-of-the-art CATI project, funded through its Advance McHenry County program. McHenry County College’s award will support more than half of the equipment costs for the new center.

“The building itself is outfitted with the latest technology and equipment, and the courses are taught by experienced industry professionals,” Carzoli said in a release. “Our curriculum was also developed with input from local employers, which means our students will graduate with the skills our community needs.”

Former Sage Products Chairman and CEO Vince Foglia – the vice president of the Foglia Family Foundation – said he took his business to McHenry County in 1980 and originally came in pursuit of a “strong workforce.”

“This tech center is something that we’ve always needed,” Folgia said at the groundbreaking ceremony in 2022. “We’ve always had a problem finding people who can fix things. … As far as I’m concerned, it’s a profession.”

Representatives of locally based companies like Stryker, which merged with Sage in 2016, and General Kinematics were at the open house to showcase what careers in the field look like. The programs are “employer-driven curriculum” that provide hands-on experience, Pleuger said.

Getting formal schooling in manufacturing and technology will get students well ahead of the pack, Stryker Manufacturing Associate Supervisor Angel Berumen said. He said he looks forward to bridging the gap of finding talent for the wide array of positions Stryker offers.

“Manufacturing is the backbone of our economy,” Berumen said.

For more information, visit mchenry.edu/cati.

This story has been updated to reflect McHenry County’s contribution to the Foglia Center.