Branthaven Homes donates $1 million to Mohawk College’s City School programs

May 19, 2023 – Steve and Elizabeth Stipsits, and Branthaven Homes have made a $1 million donation to the Mohawk College’s City School program.

The donation will help to create new education and employment opportunities in the residential construction sector for people in underserved communities through City School training programs.

“We are incredibly grateful to Steve, Elizabeth and Branthaven Homes,” said Ron J. McKerlie President and CEO of Mohawk College and President of the Mohawk College Foundation. “This powerful gift will allow City School to provide training for people and help them secure lasting, meaningful work in construction trades while addressing labour shortages in the field.”

“The main reason for our investment in City School is to see up to 1200 students and their families no longer having to choose between paying for food or rent,” said Steve Stipsits, President of Branthaven Homes. “I have never seen a more powerful vehicle than City School for helping people step into careers and out of the cycle of multi-generational poverty.”

Steve Stipsits has a long connection to Mohawk College. He is an alumnus of the college, graduating from the Architectural Technology Program in 1984 before beginning his career. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the College and a Mohawk College Alumnus of Distinction. He generously served as a Governor of Mohawk College from 2017 until August 2022 and has been a champion of City School by Mohawk and the mobile classroom program that has become the hallmark of this nationally-recognized access program.

This Branthaven Homes donation will support a $2-million, five-year workforce development strategy that leverages City School by Mohawk College rapid skills-training programs and other Mohawk College assets to increase training capacity and address acute workforce shortages in the construction sector.

This will include:

• development of industry-focused training programs;
• addressing and removing barriers to training and employment for people in underserved communities;
• promotion of construction trades careers; and
• delivery of demand-led programs through City School by Mohawk College.

To acknowledge this gift, City School mobile classrooms will include branding that recognizes the support of Branthaven Homes. Also, to honour the generosity of Steve and Elizabeth Stipsits, and Branthaven Homes, the college also unveiled today the Branthaven Construction Trades, Technology & Research Centre at its Stoney Creek Campus for Skilled Trades.