The American Job Center has been custom built with our community’s needs and experience in mind.
In early 2020, we began an in-depth project of reviewing, researching, and planning to relocate our new Center. Over the course of two years, we conducted focus groups, studied potential site locations, visited other American Job Centers, and interviewed staff at those centers. We also commissioned Wichita State University to conduct a continuous improvement plan to identify areas of improvement related to our Center’s physical structure and functional operations with the goal to maximize customer experience.
Poem
Commissioned for the Grand Opening.
We Go To Work it’s what we do, what we’re taught, what we want: we want to build cities, neighborhoods, communities, countries; it’s not always easy (and I don’t just mean five A.M., six degrees, ice on O Street), we have layoffs, knees locked wrong, red tape, flat tire, missed bus days where just getting to work, just having work, is work; but we go to work, it’s what we do, what we’re taught, what we want, we make this city a little taller, a little smarter, a little warmer, a star because of us, we work for one another, with one another, we build a city, a neighborhood, a community, a state; we are artists, this is the masterpiece we make. by Matt Mason, Nebraska State Poet 2019-2024
New Location
As of January 11th, 2023 all services currently offered at 1111 O Street, Suite 205 will move to 1330 N Street (located street level in the Eagle Parking Garage, across the street from Bennett Martin Library).
Extended Hours
Hours of operation have been extended on Mondays and Tuesdays to 7am – 6pm as of January 17th, 2023. Hours for Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays will remain 8am – 5pm.
Getting Here
Parking
The first hour is free in the Eagle Parking Garage, 1330 N St, Lincoln, NE 68508. Our Center is located on the street level of this parking garage. Parking validation is available for Adult, Dislocated Worker, and YESS Program participants. Accessible parking spots are in this garage. Use the parking garage’s elevators or stairs to reach street level and use the corner entrance on 14th & N Streets.
Public Transportation
The American Job Center is located in front of the 14th & N Streets StarTran Stop. The following bus routes serve this stop:
- #44 – O Street
- #48 – North 48th
- #54 – Veteran’s Hospital
- #53 – SouthPointe
From the bus stop, walk directly east and use the corner entrance into the Center.
The 14th & O Streets Trolley Stop is one block north of the Center and is served by:
- #55 – Downtown Trolley
From the bus stop, walk directly south and use the corner entrance.
Biking
Use the N Street bike lane to get to the Center. The south side of the Bennett Martin Library (N Street) has bike racks. From the back racks, walk west to cross 14th Street and use the corner entrance.
Walking
Enter the Center from the corner entrance at 14th & N Street.
Accessibility
The ADA accessible entrance is located on 14th & N Street. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities.
Human-Centered Design
Our primary goals for the new Center were to make it more visible, accessible, and streamlined to better serve our customers’ needs. We learned from our customers via Wichita State University’s job seeker, employer, and staff focus groups. We also hosted our own focus groups and interviewed customers at the Center about their preferences for location, accessibility needs, and general experiences and emotions about the Center. We also factored in labor market information, including current customers’ zip codes, access to public transportation, and poverty levels. During this phase, we determined that the new Center should be located downtown near a bus stop so that customers could easily find and access the Center.
The new Center incorporates a calming color palette, plenty of natural light, a layout specifically designed for optimal traffic flow, a waiting room, child’s play area, and private wellness room where mothers can breastfeed their infants. Phone booths enable customers to call the unemployment office privately and directly. Conference rooms and interview rooms are designed with privacy in mind, so customers can meet with potential employers and career planners with confidence. All those rooms are equipped with state-of-the-art technology — including free Wi-Fi, webcams, TVs, and iPads — that customers can use to interview for potential jobs in person or via Zoom. Drinking fountains and on-site restrooms will be available for customers to use, as well as vending machines.
Integrated Service Delivery
The new center has been designed to improve the coordination of services. The following partners and programs will be co-located in the new center:
| City of Lincoln – Adult Program, Dislocated Worker Program, Ticket to Work, Youth Employment & Support Services | Nebraska Department of Labor – Reemployment Program NEres, Trade Adjustment Assistance, Unemployment Insurance Benefits, Veterans Employment Services |
| Equus Workforce Solutions – Employment First, TANF | Nebraska VR |
| Job Corps | Life Skills |
| Southeast Community College – Adult Education, Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired | Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services – SNAP, TANF, Medicaid |
Celebrations
The workforce board hosted a grand opening celebration for community partners and a ribbon cutting ceremony for the public on February 23, 2023 at 10:00am.
Funding
Construction for the new Center is made possible in large part thanks to the City of Lincoln’s American Rescue Plan funds. The funding amounted to $1.5 million. Total investment in the new Center equates to $2.7 million.
