Malcolm X College’s satellite campus on the West Side is one of City Colleges of Chicago’s most outdated buildings.
Despite undergoing a $5 million renovation half a decade ago, the exterior of the West Side Learning Center at 4624 W. Madison St. still looks like it’s from the 1980s.
That’s why school officials on Tuesday announced the West Side Learning Center is getting a much-needed $9.5 million facelift and expansion.
“Of all the satellites, this is the one that needed the most investment,” City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado told the Sun-Times.
The Community Center for Teaching and Learning, which will be an extension of the West Side Learning Center in the Austin neighborhood, will be constructed on the vacant lot in front of the building, according to Dean Barbara Meschino. The West Side Learning Center is seen in this photo, Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
A 3,000-square feet addition to the satellite campus will be called the Community Center for Teaching and Learning.
Besides boosting student capacity by 50% to 2,000, the community center will also serve as a rentable events space.
The West Side Learning Center serves mostly nursing students, said David Sanders, president of Malcolm X College, whose main campus is at 1900 W. Jackson Blvd.
Attendance at the learning center is growing, and it needed to be expanded and renovated, he told reporters.
“We wanted to ensure that the facility matched the quality of the education that we are providing,” Sanders said.
Malcolm X College Pres. David Sanders smiles as he sits beside City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado (left) and U.S. Rep. Danny Davis during a press event at the West Side Learning Center in the Austin neighborhood.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Sanders was joined by U.S. Rep. Danny K. Davis, Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) and state Rep. La Shawn Ford, who muscled the state to fund $5 million of the renovation.
Ford said it took about two years to secure funding for the project. City Colleges is footing the rest of the bill, he said.
City colleges is hiring an architect for the project, Sanders said. The construction will be overseen by the Public Building Commission of Chicago.
The project will be completed in early 2026, officials said.
This is Phase Two of a three-part project to overhaul the small campus on a lot that formerly housed a Jewel Osco.
The first phase, begun in 2018, added biology laboratories and updated furnishings. Phase Three is still being developed, but school officials have said it could include a 15,000 sq.-ft. nursing and health care program lab.
Renderings of the Community Center for Teaching and Learning are displayed during a press event, Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023. The 3,000-square-foot facility, valued at about $9.5 million, will provide more space for students and the community in early 2026, according to a brochure.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Renderings of the Community Center for Teaching and Learning are displayed during a press event, Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023. The 3,000-square-foot facility, valued at about $9.5 million, will provide more space for students and the community in early 2026, according to a brochure.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times