JOHNSTOWN —
Some local students with aspirations of becoming chefs or business leaders will soon be contributing their budding skills to the Greater Prospect Store Co-Op.
Youngsters in Greater Johns-town High School’s culinary arts program will create fresh meals to sell in the shop that is scheduled to open this May.
High school business academy students will learn about keeping financial records, organizing workers and other tasks associated with management positions.
Students will receive those opportunities thanks to an apprentice program set up between the school and co-op.
“They’ll get a chance to really experience some real-world opportunities,” said Darren Buchko, the high school’s director of alternative and innovative programming and business development.
School district representatives are talking with Pennsylvania Highlands Community College about the possibility of having participation in the apprenticeship program counting toward post-secondary credits.
Other students will be able to contribute, too, by building and maintaining community gardens at every school within the district.
The crops will then be sold at the store, which hopes to offer residents of Prospect and
surrounding neighborhoods healthy and inexpensive food in a convenient location.
“I think we’re looking to provide a higher-level apprentice opportunity, but, at the same time help the community,” Buchko said.
The education connection is part of the co-op’s overall goal to foster community involvement.
“We envision the Greater Prospect Store as much more than a store,” said Mike Kane, president and executive director of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, an organization assisting development of the co-op.
“It really is a community enhancement project and that certainly includes youth. The school district’s enthusiasm is really, really helpful in realizing the larger mission. They’re really a key part of it.”
The Greater Prospect Co-Op, which is currently under construction, will be located at
110 William Penn Ave.
People will be able to join the nonprofit organization for an annual fee of $60 or the contribution of 12 hours of work per month. Nonmembers will still be able to purchase foods and other items.
To read stories in their entirety, visit one of these links:
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat print edition.
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat e-edition.
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash
NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash
Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country
Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital
Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest
Fmr. IRS Head Insists No Politics in Targeting
CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools
$1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest
NM Mom Chases Down Child Abductor
Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool
Raw: Obama Sits Down With Elementary Kids
Raw: Bear Falls From Tampa Tree
Ousted IRS Chief: Errors Not Caused by Politics
Terror Suspect Due in Court in Idaho Friday
Raw: Driver Ejected From Truck, Over Bridge
Could Tobacco Be the Next Biofuel?
Wash. State Releases Draft Rules for Legal Pot
Dying Man's Blinks Lead to Murder Conviction
Officials: Texas Tornado Likely Had 200 Mph Wind
Brothers Arrested in NOLA Parade Shooting
