On 2018, OUSD asked TUC if we could train their newcomer youth to be job ready and help them find employment. Thanks to the Citi grant, we now have more capacity to serve newcomer youth and give them an OYE-like training with job readiness and whole-person wellness components. We recognize that attaining employment is their immediate need, as opposed to career and college exploration. But we also recognize that a lot of newcomer youth have developed traumas from their trip, and are in need of more services than our typical clients. Therefore, we are intentionally developing this program bring a focus on wellness to their whole being. Our training will not only encompass job-readiness training, but also feature guest speakers that are experts fields such as in immigrant worker’s rights, stress and self-help strategies, newcomer leadership development, and financial capability.
Our partners in this training are:
- La Clinica de La Raza, Cultura y Bienestar: presenting on Whole-Person Wellness and Self-Help Strategies.
- Spanish Speaking Citizens’ Foundation: presenting on newcomer education support services and leadership.
- Centro Legal de La Raza: presenting on Know Your Rights as Newcomer and Immigrant in the US, Navigating Encounters with ICE, and Rights as a CA Immigrant Worker
- MyPath: presenting financial capability. For the future, MyPath is supporting to onboard Self-Help Credit Union as a partner to develop youth-friendly bank accounts for all our youth programs.
Through
the 10-hour training, youth will:
learn about the job search process, have an overview of a resume and how to
write it, know about financial institutions, and most importantly, be connected
directly to additional services and partners that can support their arrival and
beyond. We will be granting $200 to each participant for completing the
training, and OUSD will place these youth in a hands-on work experience which will
pay an additional $395.
This training is being conducted by Community Programs Staff: Jessica Martin, Youth Career and Financial Coach; Jessica Peregrina, Career Exploration Specialist; and Alex Mora, Youth Career Development Manager. As we complete this pilot, we hope we can develop a more robust program for the growing population.
