Where Has the Time Gone?
This summer of 2014 Rosedale Tech will have reached a milestone of celebrating 65 years in Higher Education. Rosedale’s rich history includes being a non-profit institution that has prepared Western Pennsylvania’s finest individuals in the area of trade careers including Automotive, Diesel, Electrical, Truck Driving and HVAC Technologies.
The journey to becoming the state of the art education training facility it is today has been long. It all began in 1949 at a location outside of Verona. The school remained at this location until 1969 when it was purchased by Mr. Phillip Chosky, a local philanthropist, who moved Rosedale to East Ohio Street in the Pittsburgh’s North Side.
Around 1974, Mr. Ben Wilke was hired to restructure how the school operated, increase enrollment and develop financial aid programs. Due to rapid growth the school was soon relocated to Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh’s historic Strip District. Two years later, because of the proximity of the building to the construction to create I-579, the state acquired the building. Because of the states acquisition Rosedale relocated to Browns Hill Road in East Pittsburgh. In 2001 Ben Wilke was promoted to Director of the school. Because of his continued success Rosedale continued to grow and in 2006 moved to its current location in Kennedy Township. At around the same time of the move Ben’s son, Dennis Wilke, assumed the role of President and Director. Today Dennis is still active in those positions.
Constantly evolving, Rosedale continues to produce graduates who are essential to the driving force to our region’s economy. We never fail to adapt and maintain a stellar curriculum that keeps pace with the ever changing employment landscape and expanding skill gap. It is our adaptability and comprehensive education that allows us to maintain a strong reputation amongst both employers and graduates. In addition we maintain strong support from all of our students, faculty, and staff.
Dennis Wilke has continued to uphold the Rosedale Tech’s philosophy of offering highly skilled training that result in gainful employment. As an institution of Higher Education we aim to support our student throughout their education at Rosedale and beyond. We not only care about supporting our students but providing an atmosphere that is conducive to our faculty and staff. For the fourth consecutive time Rosedale Tech employees have voted it one of The Best Places to Work.
Rosedale Technical Institute is very proud to have maintained a tradition of excellence in education in the trades for the last 65 years. With continued growth we remain excited for the future and increased opportunities to make a positive contribution to the Western Pennsylvania region.