JJC eyes Grundy County expansion

Joliet Junior College on Tuesday announced that it has formed an exploratory committee to look at expansion into Grundy County.

JJC now has a Morris Education Center, which provides a local facility for classes there. But the college is looking at expanding Grundy-based operations.

College officials at a meeting last month pointed to growing population, high median income, and an expanding workforce in Grundy County as opportunities for growth for JJC.

“It’s an exciting moment in the history of Joliet Junior College, but it’s also an exciting moment for the students on the western end of our district,” JJC President Clyne Namuo said at the May meeting of the college board of trustees.

Namua said he has asked the exploratory committee, which was in place on May 10, to come up with three options for JJC’s expansion into Grundy County in a report that will be brought back to the committee by October.

The JJC district, centered at its main campus on Houbolt Road in Joliet, takes in at least parts of seven counties. Will County makes up the largest portion of the JJC district, but it also includes most of Grundy County.

Grundy County has become the fourth fastest growing county in Illinois with a pace of job growth that exceeds the national average, JJC Executive Vice President Yolanda Farmer said at the May meeting.

“JJC already has a presence in Morris with the Morris Education Center, where we have hard working, dedicated staff members,” Farmer said. “But I believe we can do better for our students, for the workforce and for the community.”

The exploratory committee is primarily made up of Grundy County officials and business people, some of whom already have been discussing JJC expansion with the college.