Kingsborough College to receive funding from Citizens Bank

June 6, 2023 Special from Kingsborough Community College

Kingsborough campus. Photo: Kingsborough Community College

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SHEEPSHEAD BAY – Kingsborough Community College (KCC) will receive $100,000 in funding from Citizens Bank as a part of an additional $400,000 investment in the Education Design Lab’s Community College Growth Engine to benefit CUNY community colleges. Along with KCC, CUNY community colleges also receiving $100,000 each are LaGuardia, Borough of Manhattan and Queensborough.

Kingsborough Community College (KCC) announced it will receive $100,000 in funding from Citizens Bank as part of an additional $400,000 investment in the Education Design Lab’s Community College Growth Engine to benefit CUNY community colleges. Pictured, from left to right, are Bruce Van Saun, chair and CEO, Citizens Financial Group; Christine Zagari-LoPorto, associate dean, and Jessica Cinelli, grants specialist, both in workforce development at KCC; and Bill Hughes, president and CEO, Education Design Lab. Photo: Education Design Lab.

As a result of Citizens’ investment, each of the participating CUNY community colleges will develop two to three additional micro-pathways in concert with local employers in high-growth industries that are aligned with regional labor market demand. The project also aims to fortify regional economic stability in New York City and other participating communities while benefiting local employers through an increasingly diversified workforce.

The Division partnered with EDL for the past three years, creating and offering micro-credentials in UX Design and Health Coaching. “It is an exciting time to continue our partnership with the Education Design Lab (EDL) to prepare students for a career in tourism and hospitality as the industry expands in New York City,” said Dr. Simone Rodriguez, vice president of Workforce Development, Continuing Education & Strategic Partnerships at Kingsborough Community College. This new funding will allow the Division to create a new micro-credential pathway in Hospitality and Customer Service to be offered free to participants in the fall of 2023.

This investment, combined with a prior contribution of $400,000 to bring the program to Bunker Hill Community College in Boston and the Community College of Philadelphia, plus a new investment of $200,000 for the Community College of Rhode Island, brings the total funding of EDL through the Citizens Community College Accelerator to $1 Million.

About Kingsborough Community College

Founded in 1963, Kingsborough Community College is Brooklyn’s only community college. Located on a 70-acre campus in Manhattan Beach, Kingsborough remains firmly committed to its mission of providing both liberal arts and career education, promoting student learning and development, as well as strengthening and serving its diverse community. Kingsborough provides a high-quality education through associate degree programs that prepare students for transfer to senior colleges or entry into the workforce. Serving approximately 10,000 full- and part-time students annually and an additional 10,000 students in its expanding continuing education program, Kingsborough has earned recognition as a Leader College of Distinction for excellence in student success by Achieving the Dream, and has been identified as a Top Community College in the nation by the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program.

About the KCC Division of Workforce Development, Continuing Education and Strategic Partnerships

Kingsborough Community College’s Division of Workforce Development, Strategic Partnerships & Office of Continuing Education has a long history of successfully executing workforce-training programs. Its broad range of programs promotes learning, enrichment and career and professional development. It has provided thousands with job training, college entrance preparation, and personal development, with a focus on careers in health, technology, business and trade.