Detroit Stormwater Specialist Training® (SWST)

Be Part of a Green Future

Are you looking for an opportunity to get a job working outdoors? If so, this class is for you – NO PRIOR EXPERIENCE NEEDED!

The Detroit Storm Water Specialist Training (SWST) Program is a job skills training program designed to provide YOU with pathways toward living wage employment. This job is perfect for those who enjoy working outdoors and want to learn how landscaping features designed can help protect the Rouge River, Detroit River, and Lake Erie. The 8-week, 16-class course will teach you how to weed native gardens, plant identification techniques, photo monitoring, soil identification, observing and correcting erosion and sediment issues, transplanting and thinning plants. Additionally, participants can expect to strengthen their work readiness skills to aid in their success in the course. This class will be taught by Friends of the Rouge, Sierra Club Michigan Chapter, with partners at St. Suzanne Community Resource Center, and funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Adrian Dominican Sisters, and Sisters of Mercy.

Upon completion, students will gain skills to apply for roles such as Park or Ground Maintenance Workers or, can use this knowledge to start their own business.

Course Dates and Times

May 19th-July 9th

8 Weeks, 16 Classes
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 9 am – 12 pm

Applications accepted on a rolling basis!

Class Location:
St. Suzanne Cody Rouge Community Resource Center,
19321 W. Chicago, Detroit, 48228
(link to Google Map)

NOTE: Classes meet in-person and will include outdoor hands-on instruction, with occasional indoor instruction. Participants will be digging in the dirt, taking soil samples, assessing drainage, using measuring tools, sketching sites and installing a rain garden as part of the course. Participants are expected to dress appropriately for outdoor work. Please bring a reusable water bottle. Water and bathrooms available on-site.

Questions? Contact Friends of the Rouge at
734-927-4900 / mconnors@therouge.org

Photos show past SWST cohorts learning about stormwater, native plants and weeds, and digging and planting rain gardens at St. Suzanne in Detroit.