LIFT Regional Innovation Center" />
Mattoon school district's LIFT (Leaders Innovating for Tomorrow) houses a regional innovation center for the surrounding 28 school districts in the area. The six-story, 50,000 square foot center offers a variety of work-ready and leadership training programs.
This regional innovation and technology center is a central hub for students to prepare for college or careers straight out of high school. The facility has been designed to support programs for Communications, Childcare, Information Technology, HVAC/Green Energy, Manufacturing, Architecture & Construction, Leadership, Culinary Arts and Hospitality.
LIFT focuses on developing young adults by teaching leadership to every student, creating a culture of student empowerment, and aligning systems to drive results in academics.
Explore. Lead. LIFT.
Located at the heart of a small town that is rich in history, the 1928 building is a symbol of the community. Since 1975, the facility previously housed an innovative company that specialized in connecting others through technology and a workplace that valued collaboration and idea sharing.
Today, the iconic building and site provide the opportunity to serve future generations. With the ability to use the site virtually as it was, design focus was directed to renovating the inside. The facility is now a direct reflection of the values and efforts that lived within its walls for years prior, re-imagined to house a community of students from different backgrounds available to 28 school districts.
- Adaptive Reuse
- Leadership Training
- Work-ready Programming
- Serves 28 Regional Districts
- Hands-On Learning
- Makerspaces
“This space is beyond just a school, this is a regional center built and created to provide experiences for kids to put them on pathways that they never had opportunities to be on before.” - District Leader
The new Ellsworth Dansby Jr. Magnet School houses K-8 students in an environment that revolves around student-focused learning with the incorporation of flexible and collaborative work spaces to encourage students to work in small groups.
The new K-8 school features a commons area with a stage for presentations and events, along with a media commons in the core of the school. Students enjoy colorful “portals” to represent different environments within the school, as well as creative makerspaces for a hands-on education.
The district had two separate schools that served their small, rural student population. Both campuses needed extensive updates and lacked 21st century spaces. The new, smaller single campus school serves the district within a tighter footprint with increased 21st century program space.
The Mahomet-Seymour School District wanted to take advantage of their high school expansion to create an image that reflected the strong civic pride in their school’s education, music and athletic programs.