How one Chicago program is diversifying the solar workforce

A Chicago nonprofit called the 548 Foundation just celebrated its 700th graduate from a program that trains residents of the city's South and West sides, largely low-income and African American communities, for jobs in solar installation. The foundation grew out of a company founded by A.J. Patton, who started by renovating apartment buildings with solar panels and energy upgrades but found the construction crews didn't include the people living in those neighborhoods. That gap led him to launch the training program.

The sessions run three months and cover solar installation along with electrical and carpentry work, plus basic skills like math and resume writing. Since 2023 the program has operated through an Illinois state workforce-development law passed in 2021 aimed at diversifying who gets hired for solar and clean energy jobs. Participants receive a stipend, along with help with child care, transportation, and other obstacles that can keep people from finishing training or keeping a job once they get one. Support continues after graduation.

Patton reported a 70 percent graduation rate and a 68 percent job placement rate, with graduates typically finding work within 33 days and earning an average of $68,000 a year. The program now runs multiple sessions a year in Chicago and in the suburbs of Aurora, Elgin, and Waukegan, and another Chicago session starts this month. For homeowners, this isn't a rebate or incentive to act on, but it points to a state effort to build a more diverse, local solar workforce in Illinois.