Colin MacFarlane

Manager of Youth Wellness

Colin began working at NSC in 2020 as a case manager for the Family Strengthening Program and now currently serves as the Manager of Youth Wellness Services. He directs the G.R.O.W. Program, which is a workshop series and a collaboration with the US Committee for Refugee and Immigrants, for which he is the lead facilitator. He also manages the Youth Career Readiness Program, which is a job-training program for out of school youth and a collaboration with Philadelphia Works. Finally, he oversees the English for Spanish Speakers Program, which is a targeted ESL program for Spanish speaking youth. Colin was raised in Collingswood, New Jersey and has always had strong ties to the Philadelphia area. He is first generation American by way of his father who immigrated to the United States from Scotland at the age of 24. Prior to joining NSC, Colin studied and completed a Bachelors of Arts in Music Education at Monmouth University. Subsequently he worked for many years as a music teacher. He returned to school in 2017 for a Masters in Arts in Bilingual Bicultural Studies at La Salle University and is now a fluent Spanish Speaker. In 2019, Colin spent six months in Guayaquil, Ecuador working as a teacher at an education center for underprivileged youth. He continues to use his unique skills and experiences to help the at large Philadelphia youth immigrant population to find more success in education, work, and life. Outside of his work focus, Colin is an avid runner having competed in six marathons, which includes two entries in the prestigious Boston Marathon. He is also a local musician and has been embedded in the Philadelphia music scene for over 15 years.