New EPA-funded City College program prepares South Bronx residents for environmental careers

Unemployed and underemployed residents of the South Bronx can soon look forward to receiving training and seeking full-time job opportunities in the environmental field, thanks to a City College of New York program funded by the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA]. CCNY is the recipient of a three-year $200,000 Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training (EWDJT) grant from the EPA to create a skilled workforce in communities where brownfields assessment and cleanup activities are taking place.

Working in conjunction with the Office of Continuing and Professional Studies on campus, CCNY’s Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences will run the EWDJT program for up to 60 participants from the South Bronx starting this fall. Training will cover the first two years with job placement the primary focus of the third year. Graduates will earn certification in various environmental fields, including:

•    Hazardous waste operations and emergency response; 
•    Environmental sampling and analysis; and 
•    Other environmental health and safety training.

Angelo Lampousis, lecturer in CCNY’s Division of Science, who will lead the program, said the EWDJT grant, the first of its kind for City College, would critically strengthen the continuing education component on campus and leave a lasting legacy on professional training for years to come. “Overall, for CCNY with its record of being an upward mobility machine, this grant will help propel ever more low-income residents of the South Bronx and beyond into the middle class, while at the same time addressing ongoing environmental justice concerns.”

Noting that while EWDJT grants require training in brownfield assessment and/or cleanup activities, Sharon Mackey-McGee, executive director, Continuing and Professional Studies, said they also require that Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response training be provided to all individuals being trained. “The EPA encourages grant recipients to develop their curricula based on local labor market assessments and employers’ hiring needs, while also delivering comprehensive training that results in graduates securing multiple certifications.”

Although it targets South Bronx residents, interested individuals from the five boroughs are welcome to apply for the program. Participants should be able to commit to attend the entire training. There is no age limit. 

About the City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Emsi puts at $1.9 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 16,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.