Improving RHY Chances to Secure Future “Good Jobs”

This article from Brookings provides an overview of key takeaways from a study on employment at age 29 conducted in 2018 with Child Trends. By comparing employment quality for 29-year-olds from disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged backgrounds, researchers identified factors that make the most difference in the work lives of disadvantaged young people. These include receiving higher wages in early jobs, participating in career and technical programs that are relationship-based, and earning education credentials.

Read the article here: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2018/11/14/six-takeaways-on-how-young-adults-find-good-jobs/

The Debt Danger of Certificate Programs

According to new analysis from the Hechinger Report and NBC News, many private, for-profit schools that offer certificate programs and promises of higher-wage jobs for graduates actually put students in serious financial debt and leave them earning less than people with certificates from public programs. Runaway and homeless youth looking to improve their chances of finding work through certificate programs should avoid for-profit programs and stick with community colleges and public certificate programs.

Read more here: https://hechingerreport.org/they-just-saw-me-as-a-dollar-sign-how-some-certificate-schools-profit-from-vulnerable-students/

Benefits of Employing RHY

Central City Concern, a job training and placement organization that provides six months of paid training in the coffee business to homeless mothers in Portland, Ore., was featured in June 2019 in Oregon Business. The program reports benefits not only for employees—who gain skills, income and confidence—but also for businesses seeking reliable long-term workers. Before developing the program, Central City Concern identified the unique scheduling and workplace needs of mothers experiencing homelessness, and matched these to a specific industry whose structure was a “fit.”

Read the series on business solutions and homelessness here: 
https://www.oregonbusiness.com/article/nonprofit/item/18768-homeless-not-helpless

Making Pay for Success Work for RHY Programs

Urban Institute engaged researchers, practitioners, and local government officials involved in Pay for Success (PFS) initiatives to assess the challenges faced by young people aging out of foster care and juvenile justice systems, and how PFS may fund programs that fill critical gaps. The resulting report provides an overview of the PFS model, considerations for structuring projects, and descriptions of PFS-funded programs, like one that finances permanent supportive housing for youth aging out of care.

Download the report here:
https://pfs.urban.org/library/pfs-guidance-briefs-and-reports/content/improving-outcomes-transitional-youth

Practice Brief: Strengthening School and Workforce Partnerships for RHY

From the National Center on Homeless Education (NCHE), this practice brief describes the array of education and workforce supports available to RHY who are in or out of school, and their key program features. The brief includes examples of how programs partner successfully at the local level, and offers suggestions for building cross-sector partnerships.

Download the brief here: https://nche.ed.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/labor-ed-collab.pdf