At Schenectady’s Frog Alley Brewing, Kaciem Swain and his classmates were getting the lay of the land on a tour through the facility earlier this fall.

Swain, who grew up on the other side of the Mohawk River in Albany, organized a group of five Black students to enroll in SUNY Schenectady’s 16-week brewing and distilling program.

“I think the appeal to me was the opportunity to get Black people, people of color, the information directly from the source and be able to come in here and be hands-on,” Swain said.

Known as Black Wealth Brewing, Swain’s group all received scholarships through a program sponsored by Albany County. With the knowledge they learn, they hope to eventually launch their own local brewery and distillery and make their mark on an industry that’s been predominantly white.

“The opportunity for ownership and to take that into your hands, that’s where we're at now,” Swain said.

“It’s very exciting,” said Sarah Wilson-Sparrow, SUNY Schenectady’s director of workforce development and community education. “We tend to, in this industry, have white, middle-class men, as in a lot of industries. We have been working a long time to bring more diversity to not just this course, but all of our courses.”

Wilson-Sparrow says the six-year-old program prepares graduates to move right into a career or continue toward earning a certificate or associate’s degree.

This summer, they partnered with the state Department of Labor to launch a brand new apprenticeship program.

“What’s great about this workforce program is it does react quickly to industry needs and change,” Wilson-Sparrow said.

Along with the hands-on experience, the course also features plenty of classroom time. With 14 years' experience in the craft beverage industry, Christian Ryan is one of the adjunct instructors.

“We can talk for days about this,” said Ryan, who works as the master distiller at the Springbrook Hollow Farm Distillery in Queensbury. “The class is one of my favorite things we do because I get to bring in new people into the fold more or less and getting more people exposed to what I love.”

A member of Swain’s cohort, Shadre Domingo says the classes have been eye-opening.

“We just went on a walking tour yesterday through a couple of different distilleries, and it’s just mindblowing to see the things you’re able to create with just your hands and, you know, a little bit of farm work,” Domingo said.

As they work their way through the program, Swain and Domingo are optimistic it will be a key stepping stone on their way toward achieving great things.

“It’s going to be gratifying; it’s gratifying now,” Swain said. “I’m 31 now, I’ve been thinking about this for more than 10 years.”

“It would mean, honestly, the world to me to make this big impact,” Domingo said. “It’s just the start of something new, so we’ll see.”