2023 Graduate of Rebuild’s Carpentry Academy, Marie-Monique Marthol, and the members of her cohort that she learned with. (Photo from Rebuild)
Rebuild Philadelphia’s Workforce Development Program is continuing to serve as a pathway for locals into the labor force, with hands-on education and experience that’s designed to prepare individuals for a future in a particular trade.
For Germantown resident, Marie-Monique Marthol, the experience of being a part of Rebuild’s 2023 carpentry academy for six weeks changed her life forever.
“This is a mid-life career change for me,” said Marthol, who entered the trade after many years of working in health education. “My Aunt is the oldest person in Philadelphia at 111 years old, and I’m on caregiving duty, so learning to balance that was for sure [an] adjustment.”
She made a full transition into carpentry after applying to the academy and being selected to that year’s cohort of 10 trainees, who were all seeking a new journey into the trade.
Before someone can join a trade union as a full-time employee under an organization, they must complete an apprenticeship within a union.
Rebuild’s training academies are designed to help newcomers gain the basic experience needed to apply for union apprenticeships while giving participants a glimpse into what they entail.
“We were equipped to apply for a union apprenticeship and gain an understanding of what union life is like; what the work is like, what the culture is like, and what it takes to get into the union,” Marthol said. “Then there’s the [aspect of] working with 10 strangers to accomplish a goal in six weeks, and that in itself was removing a barrier.”
The 2025 cohorts of the Carpentry and Masonry academies began last week, adding another annual rendition of the two paid training programs, which run from March 3 to April 17.
“You have the opportunity to get a quick snapshot of what it’s like to be a tradesperson,” Rebuild’s Director of Workforce Development, Tiffany Smith, said. “There’s different learning opportunities to see if this is for you, and that’s the purpose of these programs.”
Marthol is in the second year of her apprenticeship with the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, Local 158 since graduating from Rebuild’s carpentry academy two years ago.
She mentioned how the carpentry academy ”made a big difference” for her, as her cohort was also “able to meet a lot of industry contacts and had different organizations and representatives from different companies visiting us.”
Since launching in 2017, Rebuild Philadelphia has had a mission to be impactful in three main ways.
Smith said one aspect is “to show an increased percentage of diversity within the skilled trades [through offering] opportunities for Philadelphians, specifically women and people of color.”
The other two pillars are to improve and sustain the structural quality of city parks, recreation centers, and libraries that have had years of deferred maintenance, and to provide diverse businesses with opportunities to be involved in public project sites.
The Workforce Development Program is made up of 16 different academies for specific trades that run throughout other parts of the year. They consist of:
- Carpentry Academy
- Masonry Academy with bricklaying and cement work
- Finishing Trades Academy with glazing, drywalling, industrial bridge painting, and commercial painting
- Ironworkers Academy
- Construction Apprentice Preparatory program, including electricity, plumbing, sheet metal, and insulation work
Some apprenticeships, such as Carpentry, are four-year programs, while others can span up to five years.
“We do job site visits in each of our academies, so you can really see what it’s like to work in a construction field,” Smith said.
She continues: “You get that true experience of getting there early, getting yourself set up, knowing what it’s like to be on the job site, and what’s expected of a first-year apprentice. It’s a schedule that’s built out.”
Rebuild offers different application deadlines for each training academy, and Rebuild keeps Philly residents updated on their social media platforms. They also stay in contact with folks after they complete an online workforce development interest form.
All academies require no prior experience in a particular trade and are free of cost. Applicants must be 18 years old or older, a Philadelphia resident, have a high school diploma or GED, must be able to pass a background check, and must pass other requirements that can be found on the city’s website.
Academy participants work 40 hours a week and earn a wage of $15 an hour. Students balance the work and school elements of the trade academies, aiming to mirror life in an apprenticeship. Septa Transportation is also covered for all participants.
In the Carpentry program, trainees travel to Eastern State Penitentiary’s Preservation Trade Center four days a week for hands-on, interactive learning. Marthol can remember the specific assignment that her cohort got the opportunity to work on that helped her learn the craft.
“There were 24 skylights in two cell blocks that we worked to create protective barriers for, which were made out of wood, metal, and plexiglass,” Marthol said. “We learned about the physical skills and the teamwork required to do that.”
They also attend class one day a week at the Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Center in Northeast Philadelphia.
Classwork is structured in preparation for the exam that individuals in every trade academy need to pass to apply for a union apprenticeship. If one decides not to pursue the construction industry or a union apprenticeship, they are connected with the PA CareerLink team to search for employment.
“You’re learning on the job, then you’re learning the strong math and construction skills that are needed and the knowledge in school,” Marthol said. “We learned about the culture of the skilled trade from the union’s perspective and the union’s history.”
In the program’s classwork and job site components, members learn from industry experts and union employees every step of the way. Each academy has partnerships with their respective trade unions and external training sites to make the courses as interactive as possible.
“We’re working in partnership with the unions to ensure that a pre-apprentice has a thoughtful and impactful experience, but also a warm hand-off into what it takes to become an apprentice and the steps to securing employment,” Smith said.
Since its start, Rebuild has been funded through the sugar beverage tax enacted in 2017. In September 2023, The William Penn Foundation made a $100 million grant to Rebuild’s revitalization efforts and programs, making it the single largest grant in Foundation history and one of the nation’s most significant private investments in public space.
Aside from teaching technical skills, Rebuild’s professional development workshops emphasize the transferable skills they want trainees to obtain. They touch on interview prep, resume prep, conflict resolution, time management, teamwork, and networking.
“It’s not just the responsibility of Rebuild or the union to find the job, but it’s also on the individual,” Smith said. “If this is what they want to do, [one must] have that can-do attitude to put forth the effort, and then we all work together in partnership on those next steps.”
According to the 2025 Rebuild Progress Report, 154 Philadelphians have graduated from Rebuild’s Workforce Development Programs, and over 75% of graduates have been accepted into union apprenticeships or full-time work.
The report also reveals that throughout Rebuild’s history, 36 sites have received improvements, 10 sites are under or are preparing for construction, and $493 million in committed or expended funds for development projects.
“It is a blessing to do this work; it is truly an honor,” Smith said. “It is a joy to see someone at week one and then see them at week six, and they’re heading to the next phase of their life,”
To stay updated on details about all the Workforce Development Program offers, visit their workforce development interest form.