The University of Chicago Medicine, the University of Chicago and City Colleges of Chicago have announced a healthcare education and clinical lab partnership.
The partnership involves building a new facility that will consolidate UChicago Medicine's current clinical labs on underutilized land in Washington Park on Chicago's South Side, according to a March 5 news release.
UChicago said the planned clinical lab facility, to be built on land owned by the University of Chicago, would support 550 jobs, including approximately 200 new positions.
UChicago and City Colleges of Chicago said the partnership also involves a new learning center for Malcolm X College, which will be constructed by City Colleges of Chicago and adjacent to the proposed clinical lab facility. It is projected to serve up to 800 students as the first clinical lab technician program in the city, they said.
The aim of the projects would be to establish career pathways for South Side residents and address the need for clinical lab techs. According to UChicago, there are approximately 500 job openings for medical laboratory positions in Chicago each year.
The proposed Malcolm X College Learning Center announcement comes as City Colleges has also announced it will expand educational opportunities and career pathways for nursing at Kennedy-King College, located in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood.