Renee Barry grew up going from one foster home to another, so many she eventually lost count. Once out on her own, she lived with her newborn son in a shelter for single mothers for two years.

Three years ago, Shaylee Forester, 17, lived in a homeless shelter for young women. She soon became a victim of domestic violence so brutal she wound up in a hospital for treatment for the injuries she suffered.

Two years ago, Nickie Hill lost her beloved teenage stepson due mainly to a medical diagnosis. Her career as a nurse was going nowhere as she pulled double shits as often as three days a week for nominal pay.

All three of these Illinois residents decided to enroll for job training at a vocational school — in this case, Rockford Career College in Rockford.

Almost one-third of all jobs in Illinois by 2031 will require a high school diploma but less than a bachelor’s degree, according to the Association for Career and Technical Education. To meet this demand, Illinois in the 2022-23 school year had 125,022 postsecondary students participating in career and technical education.

A recent survey from USA Today and the research firm Statista named 13 post-secondary trade schools in Illinois (including ours), out of an estimated 96, among the top 250 vocational schools in the United States. The first-of-its-kind survey evaluated 1,800 schools nationwide, but only 1 in 7 institutions, or 14%, earned the distinction.

As it happens, vocational schools are having a moment. Early this year, President Donald Trump called for a “renaissance in manufacturing” and, in the bargain, advocated more funding for technical colleges. A few months later, Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, called on U.S. companies to invest in skilled trades and launched a campaign to partner with vocational colleges.

Acceptance of vocational schools as valuable is growing. A survey from the American Staffing Association found that one-third of 2,000 high school graduates (33%) advocated for enrolling in trade schools, more than the 28% who felt the same about four-year colleges. In community colleges that focus on vocational training, registration rose 16% last year, reaching its highest level since 2018, the National Student Clearinghouse found. Indeed, trade school enrollment overall rose 5% between 2020 and 2023, about double the rate for four-year universities, according to marketing firm research.

Why so? Vocational colleges are significantly more affordable, typically about one-fourth the cost, and require less time toward a degree, generally two years — and even as little as 10 months for a diploma — rather than four, bringing a faster return on investment.

Students at vocational colleges might otherwise never get the opportunity to go to college. They’re generally from low-income and blue-collar backgrounds. They’re raised by single parents. They’re first-generation college students. They’ve struggled through drug abuse, trauma and other hardships.

In many vocational schools, faculty and staff routinely go above and beyond, taking an interest in students outside as well as inside the classroom. They call students at home if they’re absent. They address and advise on difficult personal and family issues.

Above all, the schools help the students find jobs, whether as nurses, welders, plumbers, machinists, electricians or personal care aides. They graduate ready to kick-start a career.

I know how this story goes. I was 16, a junior in high school, when I had my first child. But I attended a vocational school — yes, Rockford — and today I’m an educator and college administrator, guiding students to turn a corner the same as my mentors once guided me.

For me, past, present and future have collided. I once sat where our students now sit. I think to myself, 20 years ago I was you. Maybe 20 years from now you could be me.

As for what happened to the three women I singled out above, they all graduated. Today, Barry holds down a solid job as a welder, Forester is a registered medical assistant and Hill is a licensed practical nurse at a post-acute care facility. They’re proof that higher education — and, just as important, hands-on job training — can and do make all the difference.

That’s just what vocational schools do. Employers everywhere should make sure they get to keep doing it.

Danielle Harriott is vice president of community outreach and alumni affairs at Rockford Career College.

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https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/08/26/opinion-illinois-vocational-schools/