Long before it trained filmmakers or licensed massage therapists, Douglas Education Center taught secretarial and business skills. The year was 1904, and the school—then called Douglas Business College—was founded by Warren Douglas to meet a straightforward need: prepare young people to work in office buildings that dotted Pennsylvania’s Monongahela Valley.
By 1977, it had become Douglas School of Business, Inc., and in 2001, it formally adopted a name that better suited what it had become: Douglas Education Center (DEC). The school that once focused on clerical careers now houses ten buildings and serves students from all across the country.
Some arrive to learn how to direct films, while others leave with licenses to operate heavy equipment. As time has passed, DEC has managed to stay rooted in its community while steadily widening its reach. From the outside, it may still look like a small-town school, but its purpose to offer students a way forward in their careers has never wavered.
The Local Accountant Who Saw an Opening
Jeffrey D. Imbrescia, a lifelong Monessen resident, purchased the school in 1989. At the time, it was a modest institution offering business degrees, but Imbrescia saw a path toward something broader.
He was already a licensed Certified Public Accountant, having earned his bachelor’s in business administration/accounting at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a master’s in taxation from Robert Morris University. Although he spent the early part of his career running his own accounting firm, owning a school offered a different kind of challenge. Imbrescia took the reins as CEO and President, and throughout the following decades, made Douglas Education Center into a destination career school—something far more expansive than most expected.
Under his direction, DEC added student housing through Boss Development, Inc., the real estate arm he founded. He also ran Boss Productions, Inc., a creative company best known for running the popular haunted attraction Tom Savini’s Terrormania. The company also developed props and animatronics for the haunted attraction industry both locally and nationally, and produced multiple film projects.
A Portfolio of Programs as Wide as the World They Serve
DEC grew to match what the world needed—and what students were searching for. In the early ‘90s, that meant medical training, leading to the introduction of its healthcare programs. Design came several years later, with an abundance of others to follow.
By 1999, DEC had launched its Graphic Design and Web Program, followed by the Cosmetology Academy in 2003, and the Factory Digital Filmmaking Program—now known as George A. Romero’s Filmmaking Program—in 2008. One of its most visible programs, Tom Savini’s Special Make-Up Effects, has earned a national reputation, attracting artists who want to build prosthetics, creatures, and entire characters from scratch.
Not all of the school’s programs live in the creative realm. In 2014, DEC introduced a Commercial Driver’s License Program and a Heavy Equipment with CDL and Safety Program. In 2019, it added Massage Therapy, expanding its reach into wellness and holistic care. Each of these additions was a response to gaps in the workforce or emerging student interest, both regionally and nationally.
In 2024, Douglas Education Center continued pushing the envelope by becoming the first school in the state of Pennsylvania to offer training in permanent make-up and lashing with its Advanced Cosmetic Techniques Program.
Accreditation, Access, and Academic Integrity
Behind every course at Douglas Education Center is a framework designed to meet strict regulatory standards. The school is licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC), a body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Its cosmetology programs are licensed through the Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology, and its degrees are authorized by the State Board of Private Licensed Schools.
DEC offers both diplomas and Associate in Specialized Business Degrees, with access to the full suite of federal student aid programs. This includes Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Work Study, and both Direct and Direct Plus Loans. It’s also approved to serve veterans, rehabilitation students, and non-immigrant international students, maintaining active relationships with state workforce boards throughout Pennsylvania.
A Campus Embedded in Community
Some schools only show up in their communities when there’s a photo op or something in it for them, but DEC shows up all the time. It sponsors high school teams, supports the Monessen Public Library, and partners with organizations like PA CareerLink to help students access local jobs and training opportunities.
Faculty and students also regularly volunteer at community events, from small business fundraisers to family-friendly festivals. Over time, DEC has become a familiar presence in town life, emphasizing the importance of community and reminding students that real-world experience is part of education, not separate from it.
At DEC, education isn’t one-size-fits-all, and the belief that students from all walks of life can succeed together runs deep. The school’s mission is twofold: to prepare students with the skills, attitudes, and techniques they need to succeed in their chosen fields—and to provide employers with graduates who are job-ready.
Douglas Education Center teaches students how to lead, communicate, and carry themselves professionally, and each student is treated as an individual with unique strengths and needs. The school’s mission also stresses ethical behavior and social responsibility, aiming to prepare students for success in their chosen careers and as active members of their communities.
Personal Values, Shared Purpose
If there’s a thread that runs through Imbrescia’s career, it’s conviction. Imbrescia describes his leadership approach as grounded in Christian values, compassion, and a desire to support others.
Ask him what made the biggest difference in his life, and he doesn’t name a mentor or an investor. Instead, he instantly thinks about his mother, Mona Ruth Imbrescia, and his father, Andrew, who both helped him build confidence and embrace his purpose. His mother, in particular, modeled what he calls entrepreneurial leadership at home: resilient, thoughtful, and values-driven.
She was also there to care for him during a serious illness he faced at age six. Through setbacks and limitations, her support never faltered. She told him often that he was destined for something greater, and that belief stuck. This early affirmation, along with his faith, continues to shape his leadership style today. Compassion, empathy, and a genuine desire to help others grow are the principles that guide him.
At home, Imbrescia finds that same sense of purpose in his family. He describes his two children, Janelle and Julian, as the greatest joy in his life.
What Changing Lives Every Day Looks Like
Douglas Education Center’s tagline—”Changing Lives Every Day”—is regularly printed across campus materials, but it carries weight because it matches what students experience firsthand. At a recent graduation, one speaker encouraged students to think of the slogan not as something done to them, but something they now had the power to do for others.
The speaker went on to explain how the school’s programs ripple outward in ways that aren’t always obvious. For instance, a massage therapist can help a client manage chronic stress that used to keep them from sleeping. A CDL graduate may transport equipment to a community recovering from a natural disaster. A make-up effects artist can create a prosthetic limb that brings dignity back to someone’s everyday life.
Even the smallest gestures can leave lasting impressions. Across departments, students leave with the tools to do their jobs, but also with a deeper understanding of how those jobs have the potential to positively affect the lives around them.
Staying Grounded While Building Forward
Douglas Education Center has grown steadily over the decades, letting its programs and graduates speak for themselves. Through economic shifts, changes in industry demands, and evolving student needs, the school has remained consistent in its mission. That measured pace has served it well, allowing DEC to stay rooted in the values that have shaped it from the beginning.
For Imbrescia, success is not a metric, but a mindset. It means creating something sustainable, leading with integrity, and staying aligned with what matters most. His advice to his younger self would be to stay open and resilient, and trust that what you’re building has meaning. He believes in the power of staying true to your values, staying curious, and remembering that you’re supported and loved—especially when things get hard.
At Douglas Education Center, changing lives isn’t only a slogan, but a reality. The school remains focused on preparing its students to step confidently into their next chapter by equipping them with practical skills and the confidence to pursue their passions. Whether they go on to work in design, wellness, skilled trades, or the arts, graduates leave with real-world training, credentials, and the ability to make a difference in people’s lives. More than anything else, that is what this school has always been about.
