FARRELL, Pa. – A new program at the Shenango Valley Urban League provides workforce training with social impact.

“It’s a workforce development program,” said Erin Houston, president and CEO of the Shenango Valley Urban League.

Teaching E-Commerce and Computers to the Homeless focuses on individuals ages 18 to 24 who are experiencing homelessness. Homelessness follows the definition of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: literally homeless, in imminent risk of homelessness, homeless under other federal statuses or fleeing domestic violence.

Participants learn skills including computer operation, order fulfillment, inventory management and shipping by fulfilling orders for TECH Snack Boxes through TechSnackBox.com.

Individuals in the program prepare the orders for the snack boxes ordered online. They’re responsible for shipping, tracking inventory, ensuring order accuracy and writing and including messages requested by whomever orders the box.

“It’s your new favorite snack box with social impact,” Houston said.

Everyone who buys a snack box is helping a homeless individual gain skills that will help them get ahead, she explained.

“There’s meaning behind your purchase because these are snacks that you can buy anywhere. But this particular program does have an impact on individuals who could use a hand up … to get ahead, to get in a better situation in life,” Houston said.

The program provides on-the-job training that helps participants gain skills to prepare them for employment.

“We want to help them be able to find their own housing, be able to maintain their own housing and, at the end of the day, help them be able to succeed in life with being able to sustain themselves,” Houston said.

TECH Snack Boxes include sweet and savory snacks and come in small and medium sizes, with classic and healthy varieties. People, organizations and businesses can order boxes once or by monthly, bimonthly or quarterly subscriptions. Customers can order them for special occasions – with cards for the occasion, including graduations, anniversaries, congratulations, birthdays, retirements, thank yous and sympathy. Each box comes with a flyer explaining the TECH program and its purpose. Prices vary depending on size and what’s included.

The program started in October and employs two students who earn salaries through Pa CareerLink. Houston hopes to increase the number of participants as customers order more snack boxes. The Shenango Valley Urban League also received a $15,000 grant from Spectrum to help with the costs of teaching technology skills to homeless individuals.

The agency also partners with an area homeless shelter to teach computer skills, with plans to take the urban league’s mobile lab into the community.

“We also help senior citizens learn computer skills. We’ve done that for years, but we’re adding on a specific reach for homeless individuals,” Houston said.

The TECH program is housed at the Shenango Valley Urban League building on Indiana Avenue.

Gia Hourd, 18, is one of the two students in the TECH program. So far, she’s learned about business operations, various computer programs and how to promote the service.

“It has helped me a lot,” she said. “I’m in this program because I got chosen to be in it, and it’s helped me learn. And it’s supposed to help me learn technology and how to start a business, so that’s really helpful to me.”

Ultimately, Hourd wants to start her own business.

“This has helped me learn a lot – how long it could take, the things that you need,” she said. “It’s hard work, to be honest.”

The TECH Snack Boxes make great gifts for college and university students, Houston said, and the urban league is working to market them to parents and students. Part of the TECH program work involves calling colleges and other prospective customers to inform them about the product and program. 

For businesses, the snack boxes make a good addition to employee breakrooms, Houston added.

“There’s opportunities for really anybody to get involved to participate and purchase a snack box,” she said. “We can ship nationwide. We’re excited to get this program and snack box off the ground.”

The urban league is a HUD-approved housing counseling agency, so working with homeless people was already part of its mission. 

“So we have a passion and a mission for individuals who are homeless or about to be homeless,” Houston said. “So I took that piece and built this from that. This particular focus is now providing the individual that is considered homeless with job skills.”

Pictured at top: Erin Houston, president and CEO of the Shenango Valley Urban League.