Post Brothers and Richard Allen New Generation (RANG) Announce a Graduation Ceremony for 24 Neighborhood Pre-Apprenticeship Construction Workers

PHILADELPHIA, May 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Members of traditional and online media outlets are invited to attend a graduation ceremony for 24 North Philadelphia and city-wide pre-apprenticeship construction industry trainees, on Thursday, May 16, 2019, 5:00-6:00 pm, at JEVS Human Services' Orleans Technical College, 2770 Red Lion Road, here.

The program was underwritten by Post Brothers, which worked in partnership with the Associated Builders and Contractors of Eastern PA (ABC), JEVS and the Richard Allen New Generation (RANG) RCO to coordinate the training initiative.

The program is designed to certify candidates for apprenticeship in several skilled trades, including carpentry, plumbing, HVAC and electrical work, as well as other professional development skills. The training curriculum also includes, but is not limited to, OSHA certification for compliance with Philadelphia construction work, and OSHA Fall Protection certification, for high-rise construction work.

In the week following the May 16 graduation ceremony, Post Brothers, ABC, JEVS and RANG will convene a job fair for the pre-apprenticeship graduates, wherein the trainees will be invited to meet employers that are actively hiring apprentices in various skilled trades, and who have a role in constructing Post's 285-unit warehouse-to-apartment project called "The Poplar," at Ninth and Poplar Streets, in West Poplar, or other Post Brothers construction projects. This Training + Job Fair model is a win for employers and a win for the candidates who commit to the pre-apprenticeship curriculum.

"The Poplar" apprenticeship model is designed to connect neighborhood construction workforce candidates, who have not had access to the formal training options of a state-accredited apprenticeship program, with employers who are actively seeking persons interested in pursuing a career in construction. The program essentially brings apprenticeship training to RANG-recruited neighborhood applicants who have not previously had access to continued education programs in the construction industry. The program also gives participants a view into several trades paths, so that they can make more-informed decisions in selecting the trade they want to pursue.

The concept of training and employing residents of the community as construction workforce members in the neighborhood in which the 285-unit warehouse-to-apartment rehabilitation project would be sited evolved from a Community Benefits Agreement between Post Brothers and RANG, initiated during the project's Zoning Board of Adjustments approval process, in 2017.

As part of its overall commitment to the program, Post has agreed to encourage its project sub-contractors to employ 10 percent of its overall project workforce from the West Poplar community, a neighborhood of 4450 persons, wherein just 1.2 percent of its predominantly African-American population is currently employed in construction trades. The developer also committed to have 50 percent of its total Poplar project workforce comprised of African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians and females, citywide.

WHAT: Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program Graduation

WHEN: March 16, 2019, 5:00-6:00PM

WHERE: Orleans Technical College, 2770 Red Lion Road, Philadelphia, PA

WHO:

-24 pre-apprenticeship program graduates.
-Bernard Gorham, President, RANG; A. Bruce Crawley, Chairman, RANG
-Joseph Perpiglia, CEO and president, Association of Builders + Contractors, Eastern PA (ABC)
-Sarina Rose, VP, Development; Elise Halter, Asset Manager, Post Brothers
-Nandi Jones-Clement, Director, Business Development, JEVS
-Christine Bronson, Director, Career Services, Orleans Technical College
-William Lynch, Campus President, Orleans Technical College
-Anna Bogdanov, Academic Affairs Director, Orleans Technical College

Contact : A Bruce Crawley
Tel: 215-751-0140
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Richard Allen New Generation