A $13,000 grant from the Westchester Community Foundation is enabling the Community Center of Northern Westchester to offer free worker training and English language programs once again this winter. 

The Center’s multi-week courses in Basic Concepts of Construction, and Civics Plus, an English language course, meet weekly in Katonah. The Center’s construction course aims to increase students’ understanding of key construction skills. Civics Plus builds on the language and civics education taught in the Center’s previously offered U.S. Civics for Immigrants course, which helps students achieve further English mastery through learning U.S. civics.

The Center’s Basic Concepts of Construction course, which started in November, spans 14 classes and covers such topics as understanding state construction code, construction terminology, interpreting blueprints, and the use of basic engineering and architectural instruments.

Many of the 40 students work in the construction trade and welcome ways to improve their skills. “This course is very important for their work and it gives them the opportunity to get better jobs or to go out on their own,” explains Community Center Program Manager Manuel Mendez.  “The students are very grateful for the opportunity that this course provides.  Students tell me that the course is excellent -- that it is exactly what they need.  They say that they are learning a lot and that it is helping them on the job.” 

The Civics Plus course, developed by the Center, runs for 12 weeks starting in January and is geared to students who have completed the Center’s innovative U.S. Civics for Immigrants English course or the equivalent level of English. 

“They understand that mastering the English language and learning about civics gives them more opportunities to succeed in this country,” says Mr. Mendez.   “After our classes, the students speak with more confidence and are less afraid to communicate. This is a wonderful benefit for them.”

“The Community Center’s core mission is to improve the dignity, security and well-being of our neighbors in need, and training programs are an important tool in that work,” says CCNW Executive Director Sherry Wolf. “These classes help our clients improve their lives and offer avenues to self-sufficiency and a better future for themselves and their families. We are deeply grateful to the Westchester Community Foundation for their generous support of this effort,” she adds.

The Westchester Community Foundation (WCF) is a nonprofit community endowment for the benefit of Westchester County.  Its mission is to develop and manage philanthropic resources, and to distribute them in a way that is responsive to donor interests and community needs.  The Foundation actively promotes charitable giving on behalf of the area’s nonprofit organizations. WCF is a division of The New York Community Trust, one of the largest community foundations in the country with assets of approximately $1.8 billion. 

Established in 1992, the not-for-profit Community Center of Northern Westchester provides supplemental food, clothing, and other resources to those in need in Northern Westchester County. The Center’s 29 Community Partners include churches, synagogues, schools and civic groups> The Center operates with substantial volunteer and donor support from the Northern Westchester community.