Kolping Society

The Kolping Society is an international organization founded in Cologne, Germany in 1850 during the Industrial Revolution, by Adolph Kolping, a diocesan priest, as a Catholic association to help young journeymen with job training, education and housing. Branches quickly developed in German-speaking communities. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century local chapters tended to focus on helping German immigrants become acclimated to their new surroundings. As of 2021 there were local societies in over thirty countries. More recently its outreach has been to immigrants of various ethnicities and self-help programs in developing countries, where it aims to train skilled workers to help create a middle class. In keeping with Kolping's program of providing reasonable, clean and decent surroundings for young people away from home, many Kolping Societies offer affordable accommodations to students, interns and other visitors.