Job Corps
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Job Corps
Job Corps is a federal program that provides food, shelter, work clothes, health care, and job training to teenagers and young adults at 115 campuses across the United States. Begun during the War on Poverty in the 1960s, and meant to offer alternatives to young disadvantaged Americans who might otherwise turn to crime, its fortunes have risen and fallen in the decades since its founding. At the end of the twentieth century, the program cost approximately $1.2 billion annually, had enrollment of about 70,000 (70 percent of them minorities), and had served more than 1.9 million.
The Job Corps was created as a major arm of the antipoverty program through the Economic Opportunity Act, which President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law on 20 August 1964. The new agency was built on lessons learned from the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Farm Security Administration of the 1930s, Ford Foundation experiments in community development, urban renewal programs, and welfare reforms of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. It was also influenced by scholarly studies suggesting the complex interrelationships of such variables as economic growth, mental health, racial and ethnic biases, illiteracy, local power structures, and family lifestyles. Under the leadership of Sargent Shriver, director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, the Job Corps was dedicated not to creating and finding jobs for the unemployed, but rather to the more ambitious goals of human reclamation and social mobility.
The Job Corps provides general and vocational education, technical training, and useful work experience at residential centers for young people from poverty backgrounds ages sixteen through twenty-one years to prepare them for responsible citizenship and productive employment. The program was founded on the assumption that such young people must be removed from their home environments before effective reclamation might be accomplished.
The administration of the Job Corps during the Johnson years was continuously challenged by such problems as a high dropout rate, misbehavior at the centers, managerial disputes, community hostility toward nearby centers, difficulty in finding suitable locations for centers, high administrative financial costs, and sharp congressional and other political opposition. The administration of President Richard M. Nixon closed many Job Corps centers and curtailed the program's budgets; what remained of the agency was transferred to the Manpower Administration in the Department of Labor. Emphasis was shifted from residential centers to centers within commuting distance of the enrollees' homes. Also, technical training largely replaced general remedial education.
Although the Job Corps was more thoroughly studied and evaluated than any other antipoverty agency, its long-range impact remains an open question. In the 1990s, Job Corps faced a number of challenges, threats, and criticism: Critics charged that the program was wasteful because it was spending $26,000 per student, and fewer than 15 percent of participants were completing the program. A 1995 bill sought to turn control over to the states and to close numerous programs, but Congress voted that the federal government should retain control and that fewer centers should be closed. Attempts to boost the program's reputation back fired, however, when a study to demonstrate the Job Corps' effectiveness as an anticrime measure turned out to have used a highly controversial methodology. The study, which Labor Secretary Robert Reich commissioned from Mathematica Policy Research, intentionally denied admission to one in every twelve eligible applicants in order to use them as a control group. It then paid them $10 each for follow-up interviews to study their subsequent fate; the study's architects worked from the assumption that they would find a higher rate of criminal behavior in the control group because participants had been denied the opportunities Job Corps offered. The study cost $17.9 million and took nine years. In September 1998, the 6,000 control subjects filed a class-action lawsuit against the Labor Department. A U.S. District Court judge ruled that the Labor Department should have subjected the study's methodology to public review, and halted the study. The Labor Department reached a preliminary settlement with the plaintiffs, under which it pledged to locate those in the control group and invite those who are still eligible to enroll in Job Corps. Fifteen of the plaintiffs received $1,000 for providing information to the court, but none received any money in damages.
President Bill Clinton gave something of a boost to Job Corps during his administration, but his successor, President George W. Bush, showed little intention of continuing such support. The future of Job Corps is likely to continue to rise and fall, depending on the presidential administration and the composition of Congress.
Bibliography
Levitan, Sar A., and Garth L. Mangum. Federal Training and Work Programs in the Sixties. Ann Arbor: Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, University of Michigan, 1969.
McCarron, Kevin M. "Job Corps, AmeriCorps, and Peace Corps: An Overview." Occupational Outlook Quarterly 44, 3 (Fall 2000): 18–25.
Price, John. "Job Corps Lottery." Mother Jones 24, 1 (January 1999): 21.
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Job Corps
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This article relies on references to primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject, rather than references from independent authors and third-party publications. Please add citations from reliable sources. (May 2008) |
| Job Corps | |
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| The Job Corps Logo. Charged with a blue Ladder upon which a Red arrow points upward. On a field of Red and White vertical stripes. Surrounded with a A blue pentagon pointing downward. At the top of the pentagon printed in white are the words Job Corps | |
| overview | |
| Formed | 1964 |
| Jurisdiction | United States |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| executive | Edna Primrose, Director |
| Parent department | Department of Labor |
| Website | |
| www.jobcorps.gov | |
Job Corps is a program administered by the United States Department of Labor that offers free-of-charge education and vocational training to youth ages 16 to 24.[1]
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Mission and purpose
Job Corps' mission is to "help young people ages 16 through 24 improve the quality of their lives through vocational and academic training."[2]
Job Corps offers career planning, on-the-job training, job placement, residential housing, food service, driver's education, basic health and dental care, a bi-weekly basic living allowance and clothing allowance. Some centers offer childcare programs for single parents as well.[3]
Besides vocational training, the Job Corps program also offers academic training, including basic reading and math, GED attainment, college preparatory, and Limited English Proficiency courses.[3] Some centers also offer programs that allow students to remain in residence at their center while attending college.[citation needed] Job Corps provides career counseling and transition support to its students for up to one year after they graduate from the program.[4]
Because Job Corps is a self-paced program, training can take anywhere between three months to two years to complete, depending on the career area chosen and the learning pace a student sets for himself.[3]
History
Job Corps was initiated as the central program of the Johnson Administration's War on Poverty, part of his domestic agenda known as the Great Society. Sargent Shriver, the first Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, modeled the program on the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Established in the 1930s as an emergency relief program, the CCC provided room, board, and employment to thousands of unemployed young people. Though the CCC was discontinued after World War II, Job Corps built on many of its methods and strategies.[citation needed][original research?]
The current national director of the Office of Job Corps is Edna Primrose, who was appointed on March 12, 2010.[5] The Job Corps program is currently authorized under Title I-C of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.[6]
Since its inception in 1964 under the Economic Opportunity Act, Job Corps has served more than two million young people.[citation needed] Job Corps serves approximately 60,000 youths annually at Job Corps Centers throughout the country.[7]
Eligibility
To enroll in Job Corps, students must meet the following requirements:[8]
- Be at least 16 years of age, but no older than 24 (by the time of entry. You can be 25 or older of age if 25th birthday happens after you have been enrolled and accepted to a Job corps center)[9]
- Be a United States citizen or legal resident[9]
- Meet income requirements[9]
- Be ready, willing, and able to participate fully in an educational environment[citation needed]
- Be eligible to receive TANF assistance, if the student is under the age of 18 and has a child. If not, the student must find a way to get assistance for the solo parent program.[citation needed]
In order to stay in the program, students must not violate the "Zero Tolerance" policy against violence and drugs and various minor rules, such as dress and appearance, as well as dormitory inspection rules.[citation needed]
Phases of career development
Applicants to the Job Corps program are identified and screened for eligibility by organizations contracted by the U.S. Department of Labor.[10] Each student in the Job Corps goes through four stages of the program:[11]
Outreach and Admissions (OA): This is the stage at which students visit admissions counselors and gather information, as well as prepare for and leave for their Job Corps Centers.[12] Transportation is provided to and from the centers by Job Corps.
Career Preparation Period (CPP): This stage focuses on the assimilation of the student into the center, academic testing, health screening, and instruction on resume building and job search skills. Students are instructed on computer literacy, employability, and center life. This phase lasts for the first 30 days on center.[13]
Career Development Period (CDP): This period is where the student receives all vocational training, drivers' education, academic instruction, and preparation for life outside of Job Corps, i.e. a repeat of CPP with an actual job search.[14]
Career Transition Period (CTP): The period immediately after the student graduates. Career Transition Specialists outside the center assist in the graduate's job search and arrangement of living accommodations, transportation, and family support resources.[4]
Career paths
Career paths offered by Job Corps include:[15]
Advanced manufacturing
- Communication design
- Drafting
- Electronic assembly
- Machine appliance repair
- Machining
- Welding
- Manufacturing technology
- Sign, billboard, and display
Automotive and machine repair
- Automobile technician
- General services technician
- Collision repair and refinish
- Heavy construction equipment mechanic
- Diesel mechanic
- Medium/heavy truck repair
- Electronics tech
- Stationary engineering
- Bricklaying
- Carpentry
- Cement masonry
- Concrete and terrazzo
- Construction craft laborer
- Electrical
- Electrical overhead line
- Facilities maintenance
- Floor covering
- Glazing
- HVAC
- Industrial engineering technician
- Licensed electrician (bilingual)
- Mechanical engineering technician
- Painting
- Plastering
- Plumbing
- Roto-Rooter plumbing
- Tile setting
Extension programs
- Advanced Career Training (ACT)
- General Educational Development (GED)
- Commercial driver's license (CDL)
- Off-Center Training (OCT Program)
- High school diploma (HSD Program)
- Accounting services
- Business management
- Clerical occupations
- Legal secretary
- Insurance and financial services
- Marketing
- Medical insurance specialist
- Office administration
- Paralegal
- Purchasing
Health care/allied health professions
- Clinical medical assistant
- Dental assistant
- EKG technician
- Emergency medical technician
- Exercise/massage therapy
- Hemodialysis technician
- Licensed practical/vocational nurse
- Medical office support
- Nurse assistant/home health aide
- Opticianry
- Pharmacy technician
- Phlebotomy
- Physical therapy assistant
- Rehabilitation therapy
- Rehabilitation technician
- Registered nurse
- Respiratory therapy
- Sterile processing
- Surgical technician
- Corrections officer
- Seamanship
- Security and protective services
- Culinary arts
- Hotel and lodging
- A+ Microsoft MSCE
- Computer Networking/Cisco
- Computer systems administrator
- Computer support specialist
- Computer technician
- Integrated system tech
- Network cable installation
- Visual communications
Renewable resources and energy
Retail sales and services
- Behavioral health aide
- Criminal justice
- Child development
- Residential advisor
- Cosmetology
- Retail sales
- Asphalt paving
- Material and distribution operations
- Clerical occupations
- Heavy equipment operations
- Roustabout operator
- Heavy truck driving
- TCU administrative clerk
Locations
There are a total of 125 Job Corps centers, including at least one in every state except New Hampshire and Wyoming, one in the District of Columbia and three in Puerto Rico.[16]
There are six Regional Offices of Job Corps:[17]
- Atlanta Region
- Boston Region
- Chicago Region
- Dallas Region
- Philadelphia Region
- San Francisco Region
References
- ^ "What Is Job Corps?". Job Corps. September 25, 2009. http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/en/about.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ http://www.jobcorps.gov/AboutJobCorps.aspx
- ^ a b c "Frequently Asked Questions about Job Corps". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/en/faqs.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ a b "How Job Corps Works: Career Transition Period". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/cdss/CTP.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Feds Name New National Job Corps Director" (Press release). Youth Today. March 12, 2010. http://www.youthtoday.org/publication/article.cfm?article_id=3871.
- ^ "Statutory Authority". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/AboutJobCorps/authority.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Program Assessment: Job Corps". Office of Management and Budget. January 16, 2009. http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/expectmore/summary/10002372.2007.html. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ U.S. Department of Labor - Job Corps - What Is Job Corps?
- ^ a b c "Is Job Corps for You?". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/en/eligibility.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Program Administration". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/AboutJobCorps/program_admin.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "How Job Corps Works: Outreach and Admissions". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/cdss/OA.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "How Job Corps Works: Career Preparation Period". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/cdss/CPP.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "How Job Corps Works: Career Development Period". Job Corps. January 27, 2009. http://jobcorps.gov/cdss/CDP.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Job Corps: What Careers Can I Choose From?". Job Corps. December 8, 2009. http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/Libraries/pdf/training_opportunities_directory.sflb. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Center Locations". Job Corps. August 14, 2009. http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/en/centers.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Contact Job Corps". Job Corps. August 14, 2009. http://www.jobcorps.gov/contact.aspx. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
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