CONTRACTORS

Eight contractors have designed programs to serve youth with Recovery Act funds through “earn and learn” activities from May 1, through September 30, 2009. A minimum of 300 Lane County youth will be served through the Summer Jobs and Careers Program.

Qualified youth for this program will be between the ages of 14 and 24, meet the low-income guidelines and have at least one of the following barriers: homeless, runaway, basic skills deficient (at or below 8th grade level in reading or math), disability, young parent or pregnant, high school dropout, offender, youth in foster care, needs assistance to complete programs successfully and any other barrier identified by the local workforce board.

Following is the list of contractors:

Food for Lane County

The contract will focus on 12 youth operating the Youth Farm and experiencing all phases of operating a small business. The timelines for the program are June to August, with Saturday work at Youth Farm Stand through the end of September. Cluster connection is green technology, but emphasis is on operating organic farm and utilizing sustainable methods. Youth’s math skills will be developed through contextualized learning and hands-on experience.

Lane Community College

The program, made up of three Career Academies, provides onsite experience in 4 targeted clusters, job-related college credit for work experience placement and college courses related to the cluster areas. The program will serve 60 youth for three pathway structures in health occupations, manufacturing/construction trades and green/clean technology. Students will earn up to 6 college credits and get broad overview of career options in one of three different career pathways. Work experience will be through Cooperative Education. Employability skills, financial literacy and student advising will be addressed through college seminars.

Looking Glass Riverfront School and Career Center

This contract will serve 86 youth and will focus on the expansion of existing training opportunities (Culinary Arts, Looking Glass, Inc. and Health Occ. Class) through the addition of a 6-week summer workshop in computer assembly, web design, computer support and quality assurance. The contractor is in the process of developing connection with the Lane Manufacturing Alliance. There is an additional focus on teaching algebraic skills and measuring competency through LCC math placement assessment, integration of work-based applications and technology with activities. Additionally, the contractor will develop work sites throughout Lane County.

Lane County Department of Youth Services (DYS)

The department will provide summer services for 40 juvenile offenders through crews, individual placements and special project work. There will be crew work on ecological restoration projects, habitat rehabilitation, retaining wall construction, etc., as well as individual placements at Next Step and Hillside Heights. Youth will be placed in these clusters: manufacturing, medical technologies and green technology. There will be a heavy emphasis on employment at end of program.

McKenzie School District

There will be three work crews for 15 youth, one based at the high school, one in the community and one in partnership with Oregon Youth Conservation Corps (OYCC) plus three additional slots for internships and mentorships. McKenzie crew # 1 will have work experience for 20 hours per week operating a summer literacy program with Food for Lane County and working on projects in high school facilities. Crew # 2 will work 20 hours per week with half-time construction supervisor on projects with community-based volunteer organizations and U.S. Forest Service, e.g., planting and restoring native plants, constructing a storage shed, gathering native plants and seeds to grow in the district’s greenhouse. Crew # 3 will be for youth 18 years and older as an extension of OYCC crew, working up to 40 hours per week on Forest Service projects.

Oakridge School District

The program design will focus on individual placements in the Summer Lunch Program, school district, City of Oakridge, Willamette Fish Hatchery and Family Resource Center. The focus will be on individual placements due to small number of summer-only youth (5 youth). Students will increase their levels of responsibility throughout summer experience. Forest Service and Fish Hatchery employees will mentor students for more enhanced exposure to industry. There will also be collaboration with Willamette Watershed Council’s Education Consultant in education of students in forest/habitat development.

Pleasant Hill School District

The project will focus on a crew format for 18 youth in manufacturing/construction industry working on a number of projects. The crew will construct a covered recreation area for school and community events; renovate a play area for the Early Childhood Development Preschool by building a new play structure and enclosing fence; assist in the construction of residential housing in conjunction with Habitat for Humanity; and participate in fundraising for Habitat for Humanity through production of birdhouses and benches for sale or auction. The Habitat for Humanity project will involve job shadowing and opportunities for hands-on training with construction professionals.

South Lane School District

Program design will incorporate individual placements, small groups, crews and cohorts for 65 youth, with instruction embedded in industry-specific work; participants may earn both high school and college credits. Targeted industry cluster involvement includes: health care, manufacturing and green technology. Summer work activities are planned with Aprovecho Research and Education Center (focus on sustainable forest management, permaculture, and sustainable agriculture): hands-on projects include water conservation, storage and abatement; lumber processing, carpentry and natural building, small scale aquaculture systems; solar hot water system design and installation. There will be work crews in experiential forest employment project at Fremont-Winema Forest; students will work with U.S. Forest employees assessing health of aspen groves on public lands for developing restoration plans; crews in Umpqua National Forest will complete high priority watershed and riparian restoration projects and trail maintenance/construction projects. Other cohorts at South Lane Fire and Rescue (SLFR) will work alongside SLFR firefighters and medics in Cottage Grove and Creswell. SLFR program will include: on-the-job training in all aspects of Fire and Rescue, ride along experiences, regular fire station duties. Students may receive First Responder and/or Volunteer Firefighter training. Individual internship placements are planned at City of Cottage Grove sites, in businesses via partnership with the Chamber plus work experience and internships through South Lane School District.