The Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners last week welcomed five new sisters to the union as they graduated from the MidAtlantic Carpenters Training Center’s 6-week pre-apprenticeship training program in Upper Marlboro, MD. "These are not just jobs, these are careers" said Sue Schultz from the KML Carpenters Regional Council's "Sisters in the Brotherhood," a key partner of the Metro Washington Council’s Community Services Agency’s Women in the Trades initiative. While regional and national averages for women in construction apprenticeships are in the low single-digits, the Carpenters Regional Council is at a whopping 13% rate, thanks in part to "Sisters in the Brotherhood" and CSA's initiative, which is funded through the KML Carpenters Regional Council and the DOL Women's Bureau. "These numbers speak volumes about the impact of pre-apprenticeship and mentoring programs for women," said Sylvia Casaro Dietert, CSA's Client Services Coordinator,"The women who graduated from the program today are very proud of their accomplishments and can't wait to get their first work assignments." Other event attendees included the US Department of Labor Women's Bureau Deputy Director Joan Harrigan-Farrelly and WANTO Project Officer Reeba Daniel, from the Keystone Mountain Lakes Carpenters Regional Council MACTC Apprenticeship Coordinator Robert Eaton, KML CRC Team Lead Raul Castro-Ramirez, and MD State Delegate Ronald Watson (MD 23, at center in photo).