The powerful District 1199C — an umbrella union that represents healthcare workers and employees who are affiliated with AFSCME and the AFL-CIO — will offer a set of unique, free to low-cost programs geared towards helping eligible Philadelphians test for an obtain a General Equivalent Diploma or sharpen their workforce readiness.
Programming will be provided via District 1199C’s Training and Upgrading Fund.
District 1199C will hold “GED to College Info Sessions” at 10 a.m. every Tuesday through Friday at the Breslin Learning Center, 100 S. Broad Street, 10th floor.
“This is our fourth year of working with young people aged 17 to 21 who want to get their GED and more importantly, understand the need to achieve some sort of post-secondary education, be it trade school or apprenticeships,” said District 1199C Youth Service Coordinator and Case Manager Nia Eubanks-Dixon. “What makes the program beautiful is we take a holistic view of the student. We do the math, English and social studies courses, but there are other skills we look at and work on, such as the students’ communication styles, their relationships and developing their own identity.
“So when they leave District 1199C, they are empowered, educated and ready to engage society,” she added.
The GED-to-college program is free of charge, and will run through the end of September. District 1199C will provide transportation to and from the GED-to-college program.
Philadelphia residents who meet Work Investment Act eligibility requirements can take part in the wide array of other offerings provided by the Training and Upgrade Fund, including technology classes and work readiness programs; it also provides a series of low-cost options for those seeking to take the GED test only.
For those wishing to participate in the GED class, they can pre-apply online at www.GED123.org, and must either call or register online before admission to the program (test-takers must also produce two pieces of identification).
Those taking the GED can register to take the whole battery of tests or schedule the tests to be spread out. There are five disciplines involved in the GED program: writing, mathematics, reading, social studies and science. The cost is $15 per test for the individual disciplines, and $75 to take the entire test.
Another package District 1199C is pushing is its Career and College Readiness program, which operates part-time day, evening and weekend programs designed to provide adult students with the opportunity to learn the basic academic skills necessary to obtain a high school credential and to be prepared for the workforce, according to District 1199C’s policy. This program also allows adults to take high school refresher courses, or prepare for admission to nursing, allied health and college-level programs.
“We also have college readiness programs, where students learn why college is so important and helping them become knowledgeable of the colleges or universities they select. They will also learn how to research a career before they go to a post-secondary education institution,” Eubanks-Dixon said. “And in our career exposure class, young people begin to look at the differences between a job and a career, and how to apply their passions to a specific industry.
“I want to capture students that get into the program and then go out and inform the community [of their success],” Eubanks-Dixon continued. “That’s really what we’ve focused on, that students not only get from the program, but after they get, they go back to the community and give.”
Contact staff writer Damon C. Williams at (215) 893-5745 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
