History

Ideal was founded as a small workforce training center with a focus on IT in a small shared space in Atlantic City, NJ.

Ideal sees significant growth as new programs are added in healthcare and Allied Health. The organization moves into its first stand-alone building in the Pleasantville community, allowing greater opportunities for government-funded partnerships.

2017-2019 Initial ACICS/NJ DOE Accreditation – The organization recognized WIOA / ETP / State supported students could have a path to a better education with a better life if they could leverage Federal financial aid through Title IV Federal student aid at Ideal – and graduates a cohort of 9 Associate of Applied Science degrees, the first graduates in the State of NJ to earn an accredited associate degree while receiving government grant and wrap around support services through NJ DOL. At this point, the Institute is now operating as a licensed post-secondary for-profit institution holding regional accreditation with ACICS and is offering 8 diploma programs and 2 associate degrees. Annual enrollment at this point was approximately 500 Students.

July 30, 2019 – Ideal hosts the NJ WIOA State Plan Press Conference and is visited by Governor Phil Murphy, Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver, Federal DOL Secretary of State Marty Walsh and Commissioner of NJDOL Dr. Robert Asaro-Angelo, several state senators and assembly members and WIOA Sub-recipients from all 21 Counties.

Sep 20, 2019 – Federal DOL releases a notice of funds announcement $100M Apprenticeships: Closing the Skills Gap grant for competitive applicants nationally. Ideal begins work on a NJDOL supported application by developing partnerships with Employers statewide through the South Jersey Workforce Investment Board, Economic Development Directors in Atlantic and Cape May County, ACUA, Atlantic City Electric, PSEG and SEIU-NJ.

Nov 18, 2019 – National Apprenticeship Week – Ideal hosts a day long series of panel discussions across several cohorts on campus where WIOA students can hear from employers and learn about career paths and opportunities in several skilled trades. Several students are hired as the result of these panels, and the school also initiated the relationship with partners in utilities and organized labor that would later become a lynchpin to the federal award.

Dec 19, 2019 – Grant Application submitted through Grants.gov the Federal Grant submissions platform.

Throughout all of 2019, Ideal aggressively partners with local non-profit organizations and government agencies including AtlantiCare, South Jersey Gas, Cape Atlantic Intergroup, Cape May County Technical School, Community FoodBank of NJ, Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City, Volunteers of America Delaware Valley, Oakcrest High School Boys Basketball team, along with the submission and winning of several grant awards: ACUA Foundation Award "Bridging the Gap", Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City Youth Community Service Project, Investors Foundation (now Investors Bank now Citizens Bank) Community Champion Grant, and AtlantiCare Foundation Economic Empowerment Grant.

The organization continues to partner with DOL to develop new programming and career pathways that align industry certifications with academic credentials. Ideal is supported by several Federal members including Congressman Jeff Van Drew NJ-02, Senator Bob Menendez and Senator Cory Booker.

Mar 12, 2020 – The organization closed in person operations in alignment with a State of Emergency declared by Governor Phil Murphy and instructed all staff and students to shelter in place.

Mar 14, 2020 – Ideal convened an emergency board meeting and voted unanimously to pay staff through the COVID-19 Shutdown, and continued to develop operational adaptations and strategies to move students through the program while they cannot come on-site.

May 18, 2020 – Schools are given clearance to re-open under significant adaptations and operating procedures in alignment with an executive order. Ideal re-opens classes and begins a 10 week accelerated back to back model.

May 26, 2020 – Following the murder of George Floyd, a non-violent protest begins at the Atlantic City Public Safety Building and is met by ACPD. The protest devolves into civil unrest and looting. The Pleasantville Community and small businesses were targeted. Ideal was broken into and over $200,000 in equipment and resources were stolen or vandalized.

June 2020 – The Organization spent several weeks working with Local Law Enforcement, Fire Safety, Board of Health, and insurance adjusters to quantify and mitigate damages and return to operations. A rapid fundraising effort among the staff and board raises several thousand dollars in personal financial gifts to the organization, and a GoFundMe is initiated to raise awareness. Ideal re-opens for students on July 6, 2020 – within 6 weeks of the incident, and kept all staff employed throughout the process.

Aug 7, 2020 – A Federal DOL Contracting Officer reaches out and formally notifies the organization that Ideal has been selected to receive a federal award under the Apprenticeships: Closing the Skills Gap grant competition, and invites Ideal to negotiate and accept a period of performance and budget.

March 22, 2021 – Ideal hosts its 4th annual graduation celebration and recognizes nearly 100 graduates from its programs. The event was held in a hybrid format with virtual attendees and a limited capacity in person event with public health protocols in place.

April 2021 – The Organization begins developing the relationships and organizational capacity necessary to operate Registered Apprenticeships. Ideal works through the applications for each program required by NJ Department of Labor.

May 10, 2021 – Ideal joins LinkedIn and begins posting content to a professional audience. This initiative is a part of the strategic communications and marketing efforts to build both the B2B and B2C awareness necessary to enroll students and engage employers.

June 30, 2021 – A kickoff meeting is held for the Federal award, officially starting the 3 year period of performance. This becomes the beginning of the South Jersey Pathways to Apprenticeship Consortium that would eventually enroll 300+ Students statewide into high quality programming pathways.

July 14, 2021 – Ideal accepts and publicly announces a $3.5M Federal award from the US Department of Labor to operate Registered Apprenticeship programming statewide with partners in several locations and 7 career pathways in partnership with NJ WIOA system, Employers, Educational Institutions and organized labor including IBEW, Operating Engineers and Laborers.

October 2021 – Ideal Institute of Technology is granted its first corporate sponsorship agreement. The award comes from Wawa Foundation to support the development of the South Jersey Pathways to Apprenticeships Consortium and High School Equivalency Pathways.

November 8, 2021 – National Apprenticeship Week 2021 – Ideal hosts a press conference and tour of operations onsite featuring several of the project partners and students. Senator Bob Menendez, Senator Cory Booker, and several federal labor officials attend the event and hold a media availability to discuss the investment in workers development.

March 21, 2022 – Ideal holds its first annual awards gala at The Claridge Hotel in Atlantic City, celebrating students, staff, instructors and supporters in a formal recognition event. Over 120 Guests attended and the event was hosted by Mayor Marty Small Sr. of Atlantic City and emcee Miss New Jersey Alyssa Sullivan. The organization names Wawa as its first official corporate partner and presents them with its inaugural Community Partner Award at the event. Additionally, the organization presented Arlene DeWitt with the Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Humanitarian Award for her dedication to lifting people out of poverty and improving the workforce.

May 31, 2022 – Ideal holds its first inperson graduation event since 2019. Nearly 70 students are celebrated along with families, staff, instructors and supporters. Congressman Jeff Van Drew delivers the commencement address and confers degrees.

As Ideal continues to grow and adapt to the evolving needs of students and the workforce, we remain committed to providing innovative educational pathways that empower individuals and strengthen communities across New Jersey and beyond.