John Wood Receives $400,000 Federal Grant to Help Quincy-Area Businesses Adopt Artificial Intelligence
QUINCY, Ill. John Wood Community College is preparing to launch a new artificial intelligence training and economic-development initiative aimed at helping entrepreneurs and existing businesses throughout the Quincy region learn how to put rapidly evolving AI technology to work.
The college has been awarded $400,000 through the U.S. Small Business Administration for its AI Small Business Development Initiative, according to materials prepared for Wednesday night’s JWCC Board of Trustees meeting. Trustees are scheduled to formally accept the federal award as an action item.
The three-year initiative will combine artificial intelligence training with traditional small-business development assistance. JWCC plans to offer AI workshops, business-development training and customized one-on-one consulting designed around challenges facing individual businesses.
According to the college, the goal is to give aspiring entrepreneurs and existing small-business owners the skills and tools needed to effectively adopt artificial intelligence technologies and use them to support business growth.
The grant period runs from Aug. 1, 2026, through July 31, 2029. JWCC requested $400,000 and received the full amount. No institutional matching funds are required, meaning activities will either be paid through the federal award or absorbed within already budgeted college operations.
Existing John Wood employees will oversee the initiative rather than the college creating new positions specifically for the grant. Outside consultants will be hired or subcontracted to provide some of the program’s services.
Paul Miller, dean of Career and Technical Education programs, is listed in the board materials as the dean requesting approval of the grant. The funding comes from the U.S. Small Business Administration through a federal congressional appropriation.
The initiative places John Wood in a potentially significant role as businesses across the region consider how technologies such as generative AI, automation and other emerging tools could fit into their operations.
For a small business, adopting AI can raise practical questions that extend beyond simply choosing a software program. Owners may need help determining where the technology is useful, how employees should use it and whether it can improve existing business processes. JWCC’s proposed individualized consulting component is intended to address specific business challenges rather than relying exclusively on general classroom instruction.
Several details about how residents and businesses will access the program have not yet been outlined in the board materials.
Among the remaining questions are when the first workshops will begin, what eligibility requirements businesses or entrepreneurs will need to meet, whether training and consulting will be offered at no cost, how outside consultants will be selected and what performance measures will be used to evaluate the program during the three-year grant period.
The $400,000 award adds a new economic-development component to John Wood’s workforce and career-training efforts, with the potential to put artificial intelligence resources directly into the hands of local entrepreneurs and established businesses.
If trustees accept the award Wednesday night, the federal funding will support the initiative through July 2029.
