Youth Job Center receives $3,000 Foundation grant

The Illinois Bar Foundation has provided a grant of $3,000 to the Youth Job Center of Evanston (YJC) to support New Beginnings, a two-year-old pilot program of assistance to the ex-offender population.

The 12-week, 3,000-hour internship initiative is offered to certain clients who submit essays and three letters of recommendation, pass drug tests, and demonstrate leadership abilities and positive attitudes.

Participants must have completed the center’s Strategic Corporate Alliance (SAC) program, an intensive three-week training in extensive job skills and life management to help chronically unemployed individuals of ages 18 to 25.

Seminars focus on conflict resolution, problem-solving skills and interview techniques. A structured computer literacy component exposes clients to basic business office skills of customer service, data entry and Web usage.

As an adjunct to SAC, New Beginnings provides paid internship opportunities for hard-to-place individuals with criminal backgrounds. The goal is to replace recidivism with a sense of societal responsibility.

The Youth Job Center annually helps about 1,400 youths secure jobs and make meaningful progress toward self-sufficiency. They receive guidance, counseling and placement services.

The intake process includes dissemination of information, interviews and job-readiness assessments. Clients are placed subsequently in appropriate programs.

About 75 percent of YJC clients come from low to moderate income families, and 80 percent are minorities; 22 percent are single parents, and 25 percent are ex-offenders.

Many have histories of drug dependency, and most lack basic skills and work experience that impact employability.

For more information, call executive director Sacella M. Smith at (847) 864-5627 or e-mail ssmith@youthjobcenter.org.