The County Cup celebrates its fourth location opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony, Monday, at Delaware County Community College (DCCC), Pennock’s Bridge Campus.
WEST GROVE — The Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) held an official ribbon cutting ceremony for the County Cup Delaware County Community College (DCCC), Pennock’s Bridge Campus on Monday.
Since the first County Cup opened in December of 2012 at the Government Services Center located in West Chester, the program has expanded to include three additional locations at the Justice Center, Chester County Learning Center and DCCC, Pennock’s Bridge Campus. The County Cup locations have provided 80 CCIU students volunteer or paid work experiences, giving them the opportunity to learn skills that could potentially increase their employability.
The County Cup DCCC, Pennock’s Bridge Campus features a Grab and Go Café with food prepared by students from the three campuses of the Technical College High School. Student workers and volunteers from the CCIU Discover program, with guidance from CCIU job coaches, support the day-to-day operation of the café. “Something as simple as a customer purchasing a cup of coffee or asking a question about the soup of the day is an invaluable learning experience for our students,” said Dr. Joseph O’Brien, executive director of the CCIU.
The CCIU’s Discover Program offers students an integration of classroom and pre-vocational instruction with on-the-job training. The primary goal of the program is to prepare students for success in the workplace and independent living. “I’m very excited about the County Cup,” said John Lawrence, Pennsylvania state representative. “I appreciate the County leadership and the CCIU and DCCC for working outside the box to bring this unique service to this location for, not only DCCC students, but for those students working at the County Cup as well.”
The County Cup, DCCC, Pennock’s Bridge is a partnership between the CCIU and DCCC. The café will provide breakfast sandwiches, bagels, muffins, soups, salads, desserts, Wawa coffee and cold beverages for DCCC students Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. “I’m all about win-win opportunities,” said Dr. Jerome Parker, president of Delaware County Community College. “Everyone in the room is a winner today because of this cooperative agreement.”
Important partners in the growth of the County Cup have also been the Chester County Commissioners. Commissioners Kathi Cozzone and Michelle Kichline were in attendance at the event. Cozzone was integral in bringing the County Cup to the Government Services Center and hasn’t missed a County Cup ribbon cutting. “This is a great opportunity, and you are really truly in for an experience,” said Cozzone. “I can tell you first-hand, when you walk up to the counter or interact with one of the students at the County Cup, you will find yourself being rewarded.”
“People use the term students with disabilities. I don’t see it that way,” added Kichline. “I see it as students with opportunities. The County Cup initiative is one of those opportunities.”
