Aspire Center

Transforming a shuttered elementary school into a focal point and community hub for the Austin neighborhood.

LJC partnered with Austin Coming Together (ACT) over several years to design and realize ACT’s vision for the Workforce Innovation Center. Grounded in community input from the Austin Quality of Life Plan, this initiative brings to life key actions to reconstruct the community narrative, stimulate economic development, and empower the youth of the Austin neighborhood.

The Aspire Center for Workforce Innovation successfully converts a site long marked by historic disinvestment into a vibrant hub for opportunity and advancement. The renovation of the formerly closed Robert Emmet Public School restores existing classrooms into modern, functional spaces that serve today’s workforce development and training needs—from advanced manufacturing to small business incubation. With added retail space, the center is set to create 50 new jobs within its first five years. By 2030, the initiative aims to increase the income of 500 Austinites and support 250 more in securing financing for business ownership or home purchases.