by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Apr 2, 2020 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Nearing their 50th anniversary, Adelphoi Village has been expanding their programming to better serve youth in over 30 counties, including Fayette County. The nonprofit serves youth who are at-risk, abused, neglected, delinquent, or struggling with academic or behavior issues. The Adelphoi Albert Gallatin Education Site received a Spring 2019 CFFC grant for the Career Exploration Lab, which provides STEAM programming to support a Career Preparation Initiative.
Adelphoi Village has found that tactile, hands-on learning is most effective and rewarding for the youth they serve and have combined that with preparing students for the workforce. “We want to give the students an opportunity to at least be exposed to various trades,” explained Kerry Ozmeleck, Career Readiness Supervisor/Education Services Liaison.
The Adelphoi Albert Gallatin Education Site serves K-12 students, and provided an Emergency Medical Responder career readiness course for students grades 9-12. All students are able to take the course and complete basic certifications, such as CPR certification, with the opportunity to complete additional certifications if they are interested in learning more, such as EMR certification. This course helps prepare students to work on an ambulance crew, which is an area that shows job growth in the coming years.
Joscelyn Gaston, Education Director, and Susan Takach, Education Supervisor, noted that students are excited to see their names on the certificates and that these hands-on experiences are a confidence-booster for students.
The Career Exploration Lab is equipped with a virtual reality welding system, residential wiring, AC/DC circuitry, an automobile brake training system, coding/robotics, Emergency Medical Responder and CPR training, and horticulture, and Adelphoi Village is expanding these materials to its other education sites as well. In addition to education services, Adelphoi Village operates residential group homes, foster and adoptive care, and in-home treatment options to provide a continuum of services to children, youth, and families.
Mission Statement: Offering outcome-based solutions for abused, neglected, delinquent and other at-risk children and their families through a continuum of treatment and education services that provide a foundation of hope for the future.
Learn more about Adelphoi Village at www.adelphoi.org.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 16, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Connellsville Area Career and Technical Center (CACTC) opened the Career Café, a student-run store that sells food items, clothing, and supplies in May 2019. Following CACTC’s mission and vision to prepare every student with academic, technical, and career skills needed to enter the workforce and to pursue continuing education, the Career Café provides unique opportunities to build skills.
The CFFC awarded CACTC a Fall 2018 grant for the Career Café, which is operated by the Building and Trades Program students under the supervision of their teacher, Mr. Bill Guess. The goal is to help improve secondary transition opportunities that will prepare students for life after high school, including post-secondary education or training, employment, and community living.
Dr. Shawna Little, Workforce Development Coordinator, noted the importance of soft skills in the workforce, such as customer service, communication, and conflict resolution. The Career Café provides students with real-world work experience in the popular, and in-demand, industry of retail. Particularly for students with disabilities, these opportunities help develop transferable skills that target goals set in their Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).
Before the Career Café opened for business, there were ten students who put their vocational skills to work by organizing the space. They built the counter area and helped transform the classroom, which was brought to life with the Appalachian Creativity Center’s full-room mural. “The students worked as a team, communicated and collaborated effectively, and created a finished project from scratch,” said Dr. Little. To learn more about CACTC, visit their website!
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jul 2, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
The word “crafts” may bring to mind a childlike image of popsicle sticks, yarn, and glitter, but the “crafts” at Touchstone Center for Crafts refer to the skilled practices of making things by hand. The 150-acre woodsy campus has studios that house activities with ceramics, glasswork, painting and drawing, blacksmithing, and metals and jewelry. To support opportunities for local educators to attend workshops that teach them about the crafts and inspire new ideas for the classroom, the CFFC awarded Touchstone a grant for Fayette County Educators’ Retreat Scholarships.
Touchstone awarded ten scholarships with the CFFC grant. “We are hoping to build up this community of educators by helping them network, building their skills, and having them take it back to the community,” said Lindsay Gates, Executive Director.
The new Educators’ Retreat and teacher scholarship program provide opportunities for educators to receive ACT 48 Credits and tap into their creativity. “We designed the Educators’ Retreat around the feedback from educators who we have worked with in the past, often as chaperones during Teen Week. They continued to come back to Touchstone to help because they liked the networking with other teachers and the exposure to the different workshops,” explained Gates.
She noted, “The more resources we can provide, the better.” The workshops will encourage educators to get into a creative headspace that will then enrich their teaching, as well as connect them with resources and artists who can suggest or collaborate future activities.
Touchstone also has Teen Week, “date nights,” pop-up events, gallery exhibitions, artists residencies and internships, and symposiums, for artists from beginner level up to professional. Dean Simpson, Marketing Manager, noted that the instructors teach participants at a level where the participants take ownership of their work and have a takeaway creation. “We want to share that Touchstone is accessible and open to the public. That involves getting people here and also getting us out in the community,” said Stephanie Glover, Development Coordinator.
To learn more about Touchstone Center for Crafts and their mission “to advance excellence in the arts and crafts by educating and encouraging individuals to develop technical skills, good design, and innovative expression,” visit their website.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Apr 1, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Both the Community Foundation of Fayette County and the Chevron Community Fund awarded the Uniontown Public Library with spring 2018 grants for the Summer Quest Program. The “Libraries Rock” theme set the tone for the program which ran from June until early August. Grouped by their ability to read on their own or not, children were given reading and activity logs to earn points for prizes.
The Summer Quest Program was available to all children up to age 14 without cost, and parents were included for activities. Dianne McFeaters, the Children’s Librarian who has been at the library for 15 years, personalizes the program each year. In addition to reading incentives, there was a treasure hunt, art contest, math contest and make-and-take craft table. The Uniontown Public Library also included STEM-related activities for the first time in 2018, including 3-D printing, astronomy, robotics, botany and acoustics.
Special Thursday Programs included visits from the Carnegie Science Center, The National Aviary, the Pittsburgh Zoo and the WQED Inquire Within program. Children learned about first aid kits, wildlife noises, seeds and more. The Children’s Scholastic Book Fair was held the last two weeks of the program, and 177 children received a $10 certificate as a prize to spend on books.
Christy Fusco, Library Director, expressed the value of involving the family with educational activities to help children explore their interests and help parents discover new ways to extend learning experiences at home. Beyond childhood, the library provides a middle school reading competition, public access computers, educational online courses, digital literacy information and more.
2019 is the Uniontown Public Library’s 90th anniversary. To learn more about the Uniontown Public Library, visit their website at uniontownlib.org. All photos were provided by the Uniontown Public Library.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Mar 18, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
The Community Foundation of Fayette County and the Chevron Community Fund awarded the State Theatre grants in spring 2018 to support Summer at the State. Over 3,000 people experienced the magic of Tinkerbell and the sound of 76 trombones at the productions of “Peter Pan” and “The Music Man.”
Since 1989 the State Theatre, and the overarching Greater Uniontown Heritage Consortium, has encouraged tourism and economic development of Fayette County and the surrounding areas through artistic enrichment. Summer at the State provides an opportunity for Western Pennsylvania residents to experience live, professional-level theatre performances at an affordable cost.
Erica Miller, Executive Director of the State Theatre, says, “The arts have always been an important means to express ideas, to build common ground, and to cultivate appreciation for the human condition. Our great hope is that through these productions, we can culturally benefit our community and its individuals.”
In addition to providing entertainment for the audience members, Summer at the State provides opportunities for local actors, musicians, volunteers and crew members to participate. The State Theatre specifically chooses productions that have large casts and popular titles to draw interest and encourage a high level of community involvement.
Summer at the State also hosted two educational summer camps for the first time in 2018, each a week long, to teach and inspire children about the performing arts. John Wagner III, Founder & Artistic Director of Summer at the State, hosts Musical Theatre Labs in months leading up to Summer at the State to encourage people to learn about the arts and feel more comfortable getting involved. The State Theatre provides a variety of opportunities for people to learn, enjoy and showcase the arts in a beautiful venue.
Visit statetheatre.info to learn more about the State Theatre and their upcoming shows.
Photos, in order, from productions of Peter Pan, The Music Man, Annie, Gyspy Act and Chicago. All photos were provided by the State Theatre Center for the Arts.