by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 12, 2020 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Junior Achievement of Western PA is dedicated to educating K-12 students with programs of work readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy/money management. Their experimental, hands-on programs provide students with tools such as leadership, teamwork, and decision-making skills. The CFFC awarded Junior Achievement of Western PA a Spring 2019 grant to support “Empowerment to the Youth of Fayette County.”
“It’s a collaborative effort with the school districts. Each school has different needs, so we help fill in the gaps of work readiness in the schools’ curriculum and provide artifacts that students can include in their portfolios,” explained Nicki Sliko, Education Program Manager.
Junior Achievement empowers students to make a connection between what they learn in school and how it can be applied in the real world, enhancing the relevance of their classroom learning and increasing their understanding of the value of staying in school.
Volunteer community mentors serve as career role models and provide real-world context to classroom topics through in-class instruction. In addition to teaching students important life skills such as saving money, balancing a checkbook, and how to find an keep a job, Junior Achievement also addresses important “soft” skills, such as communication and problem solving.
Once students understand the connection between education and local workplace opportunities, they can better envision how their developed skills can help strengthen the Fayette County workforce and community as a whole.
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 | Aug 7, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
“The first year raising an infant is often the most difficult, so our goal is to help parents be prepared, feel comfortable, and be successful during that time,” said Executive Director Andrea Pritts. Alternatives.Yes Pregnancy Support Center provides free and confidential services to women and men experiencing a pregnancy or caring for an infant. The CFFC awarded the organization a grant to support the Earn While You Learn Pregnancy, Parenting and Life Skills Program.
The Earn While You Learn program provides “Baby Bucks” for moms and dads to spend or accumulate at the Alternatives.Yes pantry after each educational session. The pantry is stocked with baby, children, and maternity clothing, as well as diapers, washcloths, bottles, food, formula, toys, car seats, and other supplies needed for raising an infant. They provide roughly 100 free classes, which follow a curriculum, using videos, manuals, and other educational materials during sessions.
Pritts said, “We are thankful for the Community Foundation being one of our bigger grantors. We always look for new funding opportunities too.” She noted their appreciation of churches that help with diaper or clothing drives, volunteers, and pantry donations that help support the educational opportunities and material items that Altenatives.Yes provides.
The mission of Alternatives.Yes is “to help those facing pregnancy and to provide life-affirming services that protect and enhance their lives, their children, and their families through pregnancy and beyond.” Learn more about Earn While You Learn and other programs at the Alternatives.Yes website!
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jun 3, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
City Mission – Living Stones, Inc. helps about 500 homeless men, women and children annually, working step-by-step to help people achieve self-sufficiency. The CFFC awarded City Mission a 2018 spring grant, and recently a 2019 spring grant, to support the Emergency Shelters. Their services include food, clothing, transportation, case management, resident management, utility and rental assistance and referrals to community agencies.
In March 2018, the government’s Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) that City Mission had utilized for 20+ years was eliminated in favor of permanent housing initiatives for the homeless. Irmi Gaut, Executive Director, said she continually looks for grant opportunities and is working with the Board, churches and community to help bridge the gap in funding.
Emergency Shelters provide time for individuals to gather documentation for permanent housing, find employment, address root causes of their homelessness and plan for long-term self-sufficiency. City Mission also provides transitional and permanent supportive housing and operates Home Again as a therapeutic residential facility and Promise House as an independent living program, both for youth.
The men’s emergency shelter and the women’s and children’s emergency shelter both have sleeping quarters, a shared kitchen, bathroom, living room, dining room and laundry as well as an office and living quarters for staff. Shelter clients may stay for 30-60 days while they work with City Mission staff to find a job and plan for permanent housing.
Staff members Michelle Lindsey, Director of Youth Services, and Kelly Snyder, Emergency Shelter Supervisor, expressed the value of maintaining facilities’ security, cleanliness and good conditions to help City Mission clients feel safe, respected and motivated to be successful. Visit citymissionfayette.org for more information.
