The college held a ribbon-cutting ceremony officially opening the ICCC Industrial Training Center on July 28.

Students will learn trades like welding and industrial mechanics using equipment that they will use in their future careers.

“There are many high-demand career and technical positions that students can prepare for at this facility and our other locations,” said Chris Cleveland, director of the Storm Lake Iowa Central Center. “The facility was developed with state-of-the-art equipment and a layout to meet the needs of all students.”

The $2.8 million building is located on a 12-acre site on Lake Avenue North in the industrial park on the north side of Storm Lake. The project was funded through the $25.5 million general obligation bond issue approved by area voters in February 2018. The project was approved by the college’s Board of Directors in 2019.

-Photo by Paul DeCoursey, Iowa Central Community College
Iowa Central President Dr. Jesse Ulrich, snips the ribbon at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the college's new Industrial Training Center in Storm Lake on July 28.

“It will be utilized for not only high school introduction to welding classes, but also for work-based skill building and workforce development types of things,” said Iowa Central President Jesse Ulrich. “We have a great partnership with Tyson Foods that runs shifts of employees through to gain them better skills so that they are more prepared for the workforce.”

The Storm Lake area is a priority for the college, Ulrich said, noting that the city is the ”fastest-growing city per capita in the state of Iowa.”

“We want to be there to make sure to support our students and all of our valued partners in that region,” he said.

The Industrial Training Center is a multipurpose facility with classroom spaces for adult literacy classes and night classes, as well as welding bays and space for advanced manufacturing.

“It’s a really neat facility with room to grow,” Ulrich said.

-Photo by Paul DeCoursey, Iowa Central Community College
Iowa Central's new Industrial Training Center opened in Storm Lake on July 28.

Iowa Central Community College serves nine counties in northwest Iowa, with the three main “hubs” located in Fort Dodge, Webster City and Storm Lake.

“Our challenge in Storm Lake is our services right now are spread out among four different locations within Storm Lake,” Ulrich said. “So the ultimate facility plan is to consolidate those services into one mini-campus at the Storm Lake Center so we can be as efficient as we can to serve all of our students over there.”

There will be more expansion on Iowa Central’s property in the Storm Lake Industrial Park, Ulrich said.

“This is the first building that Iowa Central has put up within that park area, and it won’t be the last,” he said.

-Photo by Paul DeCoursey, Iowa Central Community College
Guests and community members mingle after the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Iowa Central's new Industrial Training Center in Storm Lake on July 28.