OUR HISTORY
Born from a community need
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Corry recognized a growing need for greater access to adult education and workforce training. Community leaders understood that residents needed opportunities to develop new skills, pursue higher education, and prepare for an evolving workforce, all without having to leave the area to find them.
That need led to the incorporation of the Corry Higher Education Council on May 31, 1991.
Founded by John "Chip" Colwell, Paul "Hoop" Roche Jr., and the late Michael Allyn, Corry Hi-Ed began as a grassroots effort to bring educational opportunities closer to home.
Part of something bigger
Corry Hi-Ed was the second Community Education Council (CEC) established in Pennsylvania, following the Warren-Forest Higher Education Council, which was founded in 1984.
Today, Pennsylvania's CECs serve largely rural and educationally underserved communities by expanding access to higher education and workforce training. Corry Hi-Ed is one of nine CECs serving communities across the Commonwealth.
Building a home for education
When Corry Hi-Ed was founded, the organization also took on an ambitious project: preserving and transforming one of Corry's historic downtown buildings.
The former Hotel Corry, which opened in 1924, had long been a cornerstone of the community. In 1991, Corry Hi-Ed purchased the building and began its transformation into an educational center.
Today, the building, known as the Bruce and Arlene Smith Education Center, provides classrooms, computer labs, offices, and gathering spaces for students, educators, organizations, and community members.
What was once a hotel became a place where people could come to learn, develop new skills, and pursue new opportunities.
Over the years, Corry Hi-Ed has grown beyond its original mission of bringing adult education to Corry. We now develop and deliver our own programs while partnering with educational institutions, workforce organizations, local businesses and manufacturers, and community groups to bring even more opportunities to the area.
Our programming has included computer training, personal enrichment courses, the Corry Regional Leadership and 21st Century Girls programs, and workforce training such as welding, machining, and Pennsylvania Vehicle Inspection licensing through the Corry High School Career and Technical Center.
We have also worked with organizations including Northern Pennsylvania Regional College (NPRC), Northwest Industrial Resource Center (NWIRC), Jefferson Educational Society (JES), the Manufacturer & Business Association, and Northwest Tri-County Intermediate Unit 5 (IU5) to bring their programs and resources to our community.
In 2021, Corry Hi-Ed was selected as one of four locations for the inaugural classes of Erie County Community College of Pennsylvania (EC3), further expanding access to higher education for residents of Corry and the surrounding area.
Expanding opportunity through partnership
Supported by our community
Corry Hi-Ed's work would not be possible without the support of the community we serve.
In addition to state funding provided to Pennsylvania's Community Education Councils, Corry Hi-Ed has benefited from the generosity of local manufacturers, businesses, charitable foundations, and community members.
Organizations such as the Arlene H. Smith Charitable Foundation, Corry Community Foundation, and David Nichols/Corry Savings Bank Trust of the Northwest Bancorp Charitable Foundation have helped support our mission and the continued development of the Education Center.
Continuing the mission
More than three decades after its founding, the need that created Corry Hi-Ed remains at the heart of our work: making education, training, and opportunity more accessible to our community.
What began as a grassroots response to a local need has grown into an organization that connects people with education, workforce development, and community opportunities.
The story of Corry Hi-Ed is ultimately a story about Corry itself; a community that recognized a need, came together to address it, and continues to invest in its future.
For more than 30 years, Corry Hi-Ed has been helping open doors to opportunity. And we're just getting started.
