The college was recently awarded a $90,000 grant from the Illinois Community College Board. The grant aims to increase VR equipment and software usage in community colleges.
The money will go towards purchasing a dual user VR welding simulator for Sandburg students to build foundational skills more safely.
Ellen Burns, dean of career and technical education, says the simulation will allow students to practice welding at different height levels and receive feedback in real time.
"It'll provide live, real time feedback," Burns said. "In the sense that as a student is welding, if they start to weld too high, or too low, or too close, it will signal to them that they need to move the gun lower, or back up, or speed up, or slow down. It'll indicate what they can do to improve while they're actually in that simulation versus waiting for it to end, then getting the feedback and going back to try again."
Burns says the college hopes to have the simulator available for students this summer.
Carl Sandburg College was also recently awarded a $96,000 grant from the state for its nursing program.