Meanwhile, one downstate Illinois community college says it will offer a degree program beginning this fall to educate workers in preparation for the new job opportunities in the state’s growing oil and gas industry.
Lincoln Trail College (LTC) announced the new program this month, which was developed with input from local industry leaders. The Petroleum Drilling Technology program offers students an Associate in Applied Science Degree. The College said in a news release that the program includes, “the planning, development and operation of oil and natural gas extraction and processing facilities.”
LTC said the Illinois Department of Employment Security predicts a job increase of 23.2 percent for oil and gas laborers, 23.6 percent for oil and gas rotary drill operators and 24.1 percent for oil and gas derrick operators over the next seven years.
Efforts to expand job creation and put Illinoisans to work are critical to reducing the sky-rocketing number of Illinoisans relying on state assistance. A new report on Illinois’ long-suffering economy reveals a sobering fact: dependence on the food stamp program is at an all-time high in Illinois.