Today, young black men in many low income communities are finding themselves virtually locked out of employment opportunity. The confluence of poor schooling, low education attainment, lack of early work experience or career exposure, over-zealous arrests and incarceration, and employer reluctance to hire have rendered a substantial segment of…

Youth develop across multiple domains that are relevant to academic success. While schools focus primarily on cognitive development, many of the supports young people receive in other developmental areas come from community-based out-of-school programming. Stimulation of development in these additional key areas builds skills that support…

This guidebook is designed to provide advice from the field to communities interested in pursuing more formal connections--or strengthening existing connections--between the workforce and justice systems. It focuses on specific challenges and how selected communities addressed them. The information was gathered via two surveys and site visits. The…

The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) restructured the delivery of youth services in the workforce system. It introduced several new features, including a focus on more comprehensive year-round services, the addition of youth development elements, mandatory youth councils, Youth Opportunity Grants to distressed areas, and a requirement…

In May 2000, the United States Department of Labor awarded sizable Youth Opportunity (YO) Grants to 36 high-poverty urban, rural, and Native American communities. These communities were among the most economically distressed communities in the nation, all characterized by high drop out rates, high youth unemployment rates, greater incidence of…