Iowa Central Community College has received a $618,000 state grant to update a career academy for high school students.

Its North Central Career Center in Eagle Grove offers training in business, computer science, engineering technology, health sciences, teacher academy, manufacturing technology and liberal arts.

The state Department of Education announced the grant award from the Career Academy Incentive Fund on Thursday.

College President Jesse Ulrich said the money will be used to remodel the interior of the building and purchase some updated equipment for the training programs.

“Our hope is to be able to expand our program offerings, but our main mission will always be to provide the classes that our school districts want and what our local labor force needs,” he said.

Work on the career academy building will start this summer and will likely continue into next year, he said. The academy is located in a former military building.

The North Central Career Center opened about 10 years ago. It was one of the first in the state.

High school students from the Clarion-Goldfield-Dows, Eagle Grove, Fort Dodge, Humboldt and Webster City school districts go there. Between 50 and 75 students attend career academy programs. They spend mornings at the career academy and afternoons at their high school.

In announcing the grant award, Gov. Kim Reynolds described a career academy as an “innovative, results-based program that provides high school students with opportunities to gain valuable experience and help build a strong talent pipeline in our local communities.”