Goodwill Industries Recruiting Youth for Program

March 19, 2011, Our Town

Goodwill of the Southern Alleghenies is recruiting youth ages 17–24 in Cambria and Somerset counties for its YouthBuild Johnstown Program, in which youth can earn their GEDs and earn wages for on-the-job-training in a construction trade.

The program has several openings that must be filled for the next session, which begins March 14.

YouthBuild Johnstown, operated by Goodwill, is a program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Workforce Investment, Division of Youth Services.

Participants enrolled in this 6–11-month program work towards earning their GED, learn job skills, and develop leadership qualities — all while assisting the program’s building partners to build or rehabilitate affordable housing for low-income families in the region.

Participants spend a portion of their time in the classroom and another portion receiving on-the-job training in construction earning minimum wage. YouthBuild prepares students for the real world of work by providing specific instruction and connecting them with the public workforce investment system (PA CareerLink, Cambria County) and with regional employers in high-growth industries. YouthBuild also connects students to postsecondary education opportunities.

Eligibility requirements include youth who are of low income, have a history with the justice system, are aging out of foster care, have a disability, have an incarcerated parent, and/or are migrant farm workers. Interested applicants will meet with YouthBuild staff to determine qualification.

Since Goodwill began operating YouthBuild in October 2007, the program has provided participants with more than 25,000 hours of on-the-job training, enabled them to perform over 1,500 hours of community service, has facilitated participants’ enrollment in community college, and has assisted them in obtaining employment in the construction and service industry.

The next class begins March 14 and the deadline to call is March 11. Interested applicants, and individuals who know of youth who would benefit from this program, can call Heidi Niebauer at (814) 536-3536, ext. 241. For more information, visit www.gogoodwill.org.

Copyright © 2011, Daily American

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