Community College of Philadelphia Announces Expansion of its Free First Class Program at Minority Vendors Fair

PHILADELPHIA, March 21, 2008 - Community College of Philadelphia will announce the expansion of its First Class program to include members of the Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the African-American Chamber of Commerce and the Asian American Chamber of Commerce.

The announcement will take place at 10 a.m., Wednesday, March 26 in Room C2-5 at the College’s Center for Business and Industry, 18th and Spring Garden streets.

Carolyn Nichols, Esq., director of Philadelphia’s Minority Business Enterprise Council, will speak, along with representatives from the three chambers. Following the announcement, the College will hold its annual Minority Vendors Fair at the Center for Business and Industry.

“We are excited to bring this great prospect to such a large number of individuals,” said Stephen M. Curtis, president of Community College of Philadelphia.

Established in 2002, the First Class program currently provides members of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, who have never taken a college credit course, with their first class free of charge at the College. Classes currently cost about $345 for a three-credit course for a Philadelphia resident.

The College plans to expand the First Class program so that Philadelphia residents and nonresidents who work for an organization that belongs to one of the chambers can take part.

First Class is free to Philadelphia residents and offers a tuition credit for people who live outside the city. The program offers the opportunity to earn a degree, advance a career or pursue an interest. Participants enjoy the benefit of gaining new information and enhancing job-related skills while earning college credits.

Following the First Class announcement, the College’s annual Minority Vendors Fair will allow minority and small business owners to meet face-to-face with facilities and information technology mangers from the Philadelphia Area College Cooperative, a group created by area higher education institutions to strengthen their collective buying power and promote their use of local businesses.

Purchasing managers from Community College of Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, Princeton University, Saint Joseph’s University, La Salle University, Temple University and many other cooperative members will be participating in the vendors fair.

Through the Minority Vendors Fair, Community College of Philadelphia seeks to afford minority and small business owners an opportunity to competitively bid on items purchased by colleges and universities from around the region. Some of the goods and services these institutions purchase include office supplies, instructional supplies, housekeeping supplies, computer accessories, security, roofing, construction and catering.