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Stephenson County staff report lower unemployment, new school entrepreneurship program and child-care plans
Summary
County staff reported a 3.6% local unemployment rate, outlined plans to launch a high‑school entrepreneurship course in 2026, described a YMCA proposal to expand child-care capacity at Stewart Center West, and updated progress on a DCEO site‑readiness grant and enterprise‑zone mapping.
Andrea, a county staff member, reported labor and economic development updates at the Stephenson County board committee meeting, saying the county’s unemployment rate is 3.6%, down from 4.5% in March.
The unemployment figure, drawn from the April Illinois Department of Employment Security report, comes with other local indicators: 760 residents were listed as unemployed, 852 unique job postings were active, and 256 employers posted openings; the median posted wage across those listings was $26.52 per hour (about $55,000 per year), Andrea said.
Those figures matter because they set the backdrop for county efforts to grow workforce pipelines and retain talent. Andrea told the committee the county is…
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