THE INQUIRER • Wills Eye helps kids who need glasses, and a West Chester University professor illustrates a puppet for a new Apple TV Plus show

Originally published by The Philadelphia Inquirer

Wills Eye helps kids who need glasses, and a West Chester University professor illustrates a puppet for a new Apple TV Plus show

December 19, 2019

The West Philadelphia Skills Initiative just got a boost from Citizens Bank.

In November, the bank presented a check for $125,000 to the group to help support its efforts to partner with employers across the region. WPSI provides skills training and connects unemployed and underemployed Philadelphians to jobs with strong starting wages and potential career paths.

Past organizations that have worked with WPSI include SEPTA, which offered bus operators a starting salary of $37,000, and the Philadelphia Fire Department, which offered emergency medical technicians a starting salary of $44,000.

“Citizens Bank is committed to increasing workforce development opportunities in the Greater Philadelphia region," said Daniel K. Fitzpatrick, president of Citizens Bank, mid-Atlantic region, in a press release. “Few organizations have the track record of the team at the West Philadelphia Skills Initiative.”

Since 2012, Citizens Bank has donated more than $450,000 to the program.