Joseph Project 863 Helps Students Learn Specialty Trades

Caption: Marlin Vaughn, founder of Joseph Project 863, speaks with supporters during a recent open house at the group’s new facilities at Harlem Academy.

Joseph Project 863 Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Harlem students pursue careers in specialty trades, recently celebrated the grand opening of its new facilities at Harlem Academy.

Marlin Vaughn, a Harlem native, founded Joseph Project 863 in 2013 to help local high school students pursue jobs in high paying, highly skilled trades. A graduate of Clewiston High School, Vaughn served in the U.S. Navy and now works as a power plant operator and turbine generator mechanic for Walt Disney World in Orlando.

Vaughn’s group manages grants and scholarships to help high school graduates attend area trade schools, including Fort Myers Technical College, Immokalee Technical College, Palm Beach State College, Hendry County Schools’ adult vocational school and Florida SouthWestern State College. Volunteers offer students afterschool tutoring three days a week in math, reading and science, and help with ACT test preparation.

U.S. Sugar has partnered with Joseph Project 863 to sponsor a scholarship for a student to attend trade school. Other program supporters include Disney World, Walmart and the H.E. Hill Foundation.

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