After a roof collapsed at a Goodwill education building last week, its students are longing to get back in class

Last weekend, the roof of the Goodwill Industries education building in North Philadelphia collapsed under the weight of torrential rainfall.

The Juniata facility at 1440 E. Erie Ave. is home to free educational and workforce training programs for more than 100 Philadelphians with barriers to employment. Since the roof caved in and the facility filled with water, the building has been closed and classes are pivoting to remote instruction or moving to other Goodwill sites.

But those involved with the programming, which is funded by sales at Goodwill stores, said that the closure has been a significant blow to the students who depend on the courses.

One student is Olga Aziomsha, 39, who is in Goodwill’s English as a Second Language (ESL) course. She came to Philadelphia from Belarus last summer, and already has an impressive hold on the language for someone who’s only spoken Russian until recently.

“I want to speak English better and understand all people,” she said. “I want a better life for my family.”

Aziomsha was a doctor for 10 years in Belarus, but came to America for better opportunities. She wants to practice medicine in the U.S. some day, but knows that the first step is improving her English; she was taking classes at Goodwill five days a week, but the roof collapse has disrupted her learning.

“I was very upset,” she said about when her ESL teacher texted the bad news about the roof collapse. “I want to learn and improve my English. It is important for me,” she said.

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“A lot of people are reluctant to travel, and they’re not comfortable working from home. So it really puts a dent in their education pursuits,” said Michael Shaw, chief operating officer of Goodwill Industries of Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia.

“I think that the hands-on learning experience is far more beneficial for many of these people.”

Shaw said the Philadelphia Fire Department told him that it appeared a drain on the building roof had been clogged when it rained heavily over the weekend, allowing the water to continue to build up. The 21,000 square foot facility also filled with roughly a foot of water after the collapse, though officials from the Department of Licenses and Inspections told Shaw that the building remained structurally sound.

Shaw estimates that the facility will be closed for several weeks for cleanup and repairs. Goodwill staff and the building’s landlord have yet to determine the full scope of the damage to the building’s drywall and equipment, like classroom smart whiteboards or screen-printing and compacting machines used in the workforce training programs.

Shaw emphasized the urgency of reopening the facility, since students are depending on its programming.

“It’s critically important because this is a big step in their lives,” he said. “They’ve always had to [take] jobs that did not pay as well because of their educational level. And once they [receive their] high school diploma, they can go on forward.”

Sekou Sumawara, 19, isn’t sure of the kind of job he wants to get one day, but is interested in the tech field. He’s just 19, and has taken GED and ESL courses at Goodwill since arriving from Guinea a few months ago.

Sumawara wants to go to college eventually, too, but timing can be tricky with firm school calendars; he’s worried about how much this could set him back.

“My goal was to get my high school diploma before the end of this year,” he said.