Explore Class Registration Open for 2024
Curriculum November 6, 2023
Effingham Regional Career Academy plans Spring Semester and beyond
Registration is now open for the Explore ERCA class for Spring 2024. This program introduces area high school students to business owners and leaders throughout Effingham County while teaching students valuable employability skills.
The Explore Class is a single-semester course designed to introduce students to local career opportunities in Agriculture, Healthcare, Information Technology, Manufacturing, and Transportation. The class follows a format of six weeks in a business setting learning more in-depth about professions and what those businesses do. During the last half of the semester, students spend class time alongside business professionals in one of the occupational areas that interest them the most. Students can register for the Spring Semester at bit.ly/ExploreERCA – Sign up today!
The Explore ERCA class is the first phase of The Effingham Regional Career Academy, which continues to make progress toward the launch of full program implementation in August 2024. Through a strategic partnership with Lake Land College, ERCA classes will be housed in the new Lake Land College Effingham Technology Center.
High school counselors in the 14 partner schools will begin the registration process shortly. Remodeling of the new Lake Land facility in Effingham has begun with the installation of fiber needed to support the virtual technology that will set the ETC and ERCA at the forefront of Career and Technical Education. ERCA committees are also making plans for the second generation of coursework to be offered as early as the Fall 2025 to meet the projected employment and skill needs in the Effingham area with data provided by our WIOA, CBI and area business partners.
Effingham Regional Career Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization that oversees the operation of the Effingham Regional Career Academy. Serving communities and 14 school districts in Clay, Cumberland, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, and Shelby counties, ERCA offers focused curriculum and advanced, hands-on training that allows high school students and current professionals to gain hands-on education. The goal is to provide the region with well-educated and trained individuals who are able to work in their field of choice without moving away.
ERCA is available through partnerships with regional businesses, communities and schools, including Lake Land College. For more details, visit https://www.eiefes.k12.il.us/regional-programs/erca.
