Rotary Supports Students from Chester Through CTEP
The scene outside the Inn at Swarthmore during the Rotary Club of Swarthmore’s Block Party. Photo: Stefan Roots
Last Saturday—a gorgeous early autumn day—I attended a fundraiser for the Chester Trades Education Project (CTEP), which is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Swarthmore. Several vendors were set up on the street in front of the Inn at Swarthmore, and they donated all their proceeds from the day to CTEP.
CTEP is designed to bring vocational education back to Chester by teaching job skills to city residents and putting them right to work.
The idea for the program was announced earlier this year by the new president of the Rotary Club of Swarthmore, Dr. Kathryn Jones. Rotary’s role is to manage the project, build the necessary financial partnerships, provide supplementary funds for students’ program expenses, and partner with other Rotary Clubs (the Rotary Club of Chester has already joined).
The program accepts male and female young adults (18 years old or older) with the goal of teaching them trades that will enable them to get good jobs. Potential students are being identified and recruited by Riverside Futures.
Program classes are being held at the Delaware County Community College’s Advanced Technology Center, and also at the Chester Housing Authority (CHA). The first group of 12 students has already started classes; they are also receiving on-the-job instruction from the housing authority. The intention is to teach this group carpentry skills and then find them employment on housing-development renovation projects. As the program grows, it is anticipated that training in trades other than carpentry will also be offered.
This trade education is provided at no cost to the students. Federal and state scholarships provide funding for certain specified expenses, such as safety testing, work clothes, drug tests, and transportation. But more funding is needed, both to cover other student expenses, and to enable the program to pay its marketing, advertising, and website costs. The purpose of last Saturday’s fundraiser was to start closing that funding gap.
By the looks of things, the fundraiser was a success. I stayed for a little more than an hour, had a burger and a beer, enjoyed the live entertainment, and talked with a lot of folks, many of whom knew of me from my articles in The Swarthmorean and the “Chester Matters” blog. I believe the fundraising goal for the event was $10,000. I’ll be curious to learn how close they came to meeting that goal.
Thanks are due to the Rotary Clubs of Swarthmore and Chester, and to Delaware County Community College and the Chester Housing Authority, for helping to bring trades education back to Chester.
If you would like to donate, make your check payable to “Swarthmore Rotary Charitable Trust,” put “CTEP” in the memo line, and mail it to P.O. Box 423, Swarthmore, PA 19081. Donations are fully tax deductible.
