Johnson Controls and Mattoon, IL education leaders dream big to open innovation and tech center

In the words of Christy Hild, Assistant Superintendent of Mattoon Community Unit School District #2, "It's all about the people you bring into projects to open doors."

Watch the video to learn how a longstanding collaborative relationship between Johnson Controls and education leaders in Mattoon, Illinois, made it possible to open a regional innovation and tech center that had been the dream of the community for decades. Funded in part through Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) grants, the project incorporates advanced digital building technology in a way that helps the center operate more sustainably and prepares students as leaders in the workforce of the future.

Students train on the Johnson Controls HVAC and Metasys Building Automation System within the Leaders Innovating for Tomorrow (LIFT) center's HVAC lab to support a hands-on, career-ready curriculum. Beyond HVAC technicians, the LIFT center also offers programs in communications, culinary arts/hospitality, IT, manufacturing and construction trades, and childcare.