OCC Girls Construction Camp Receives Support from Women's Fund

The Women’s Fund of the Rochester Community Foundation recently donated $1,500 in support of Oakland Community College’s annual Mentor a Girl in Construction (MAGIC) Camp held each July at the in Farmington Hills.

The check was presented by Linda Chayka of the Women’s Fund Education Committee to MAGIC coordinators Arlene Frank of the OCC Womencenter and OCC Construction Management Program Coordinator Melanie Myers at the OCC Foundation’s Doris Mosher Foundation House in Bloomfield Hills on January 19.

An OCC graduate, Chayka noted, “Education is one of the Women’s Fund’s top priorities. We chose to support the MAGIC project because it encourages girls to explore excellent, non-traditional careers.”

MAGIC camp is a program designed for high school girls, ages 14-18, who are admitted tuition-free thanks to donations from the local construction industry, including , Barton Malow, Harley Ellis Devoreaux, Auch Contractors, George McIntosh, Inc., the Michigan Council of Carpenters, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Plumbers Local 98, Operating Engineers Local 324, the International Masonry Institute, the UAW, the National Association of Women in Construction and OCC.

Taught by local women employed in the construction industry, MAGIC camp provides hands-on experiences in a wide range of construction fields. Students learn skills in such areas as carpentry, electricity, plumbing, tiling, surveying and painting. They are also familiarized with a variety of equipment including cranes and forklifts, and receive a Tomboy Tools toolkit at the end of the session.

“We are happy to receive this generous donation from the Rochester Community Foundation in support of the MAGIC Camp experience, which empowers girls and introduces them to new career options," Frank said.

To learn more about OCC’s MAGIC Camp, call Arlene Frank at 248-522-3642.