State-Of-Black-Oregon-2015

ESSAY 7PREPARING BLACK YOUTHFOR THE WORKFORCEHeather FichtDirector of Youth Workforce Services, Worksystems, Inc.56The best workforce training program isa job. Unfortunately for young peopletoday, it’s harder than ever before to findone. Nationally, youth employment hasplummeted from 46 percent to 27 percent overthe past 10 years. This means that only aboutone in four youth aged 16-19 has a job. Tragically,for young people of color, the employment rateis even lower. Only about one in 10 young Blackmales has a job. 5Youth who work during their high schoolyears experience increased lifetime earnings,and their probability of being employed insubsequent years is greater. Intervening in thisdisproportionately high unemployment rate ofBlack youth is critical to reduce disparities inthe economic prosperity of Black households.In addition, youth employment positivelyimpacts educational outcomes. Youth who workgraduate from high school at higher rates andhave higher rates of college entry. 6Summer is the ideal time for school-agedyouth to work, as it can reduce summerlearning loss and bridge classroom learningand real-world experiences. Ideal summeremployment programs target youth of colorand low-income youth and offer many typesof entry-level employment. A good exampleis Worksystems’ SummerWorks program,a public-private partnership that relies oncommunity-based programs, schools and faithcommunities to reach young people of color.Since the program’s inception in 2009, anaverage of more than 76 percent of the youthserved in SummerWorks identify as youth ofcolor. In addition, the successful completionrate, defined as completing at least 80 percentof their planned hours and a positive supervisorevaluation, is nearly 91 percent.In the Portland area, county and citygovernments have stepped up in significantways, collectively funding hundreds of jobs. Therecently released Oregon budget also involvedfunding for summer employment programs. Theprivate sector needs to play a more significantrole in summer employment for youth, especiallyin industries that lack diversity and/or anticipatesignificant worker shortages.Summer interventions are also needed toprepare younger youth for the world of workand help them explore career options. Forexample, Reaching and Empowering All People(REAP) holds the weeklong Challenge: Academyof Leadership Innovation, targeting Black teensfor career exploration.“There is in this world nosuch force as the force of aperson determined to rise.The human soul cannot bepermanently chained.”— W.E.B. Dubois