Community Celebrates YWCA Greater Los Angeles Job Corps Urban Campus

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- With the help of a few key partners, the YWCA Greater Los Angeles (YWCA GLA) and its LA Job Corps program have successfully embarked upon building a new Urban Campus which will be the prototype for Job Corps programs around the country.

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Last Thursday, February 11th, the YWCA GLA hosted the Los Angeles Job Corps Urban Campus Construction Celebration to thank the entities that contributed to the success of the YWCA GLA's Job Corps Urban Campus building.  A capacity crowd of Job Corps students, elected officials, corporate partners and community friends attended the event, including Congresswoman Diane Watson and City Councilmember Jan Perry.  Faye Washington, YWCA Greater Los Angeles CEO said, "Thank you all walking this journey with me.  It took us seven years to bring the Urban Campus dream to fruition but the impact will yield triple net benefits for the students, the downtown business community and the Los Angeles community at large, generation after generation after generation."

The Urban Campus project is the recipient of an $82 million stimulus grant from the United States Department of Labor, which will fund a 20 year lease agreement for the new building. The project funded with various resources, leveraged $70 million in new market tax credits from organizations, which partly funded the project's construction costs, including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Enterprise Community Investment and LISC and the Los Angeles Development Fund (LADF), managed by the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA).  "We view our partnership with LADF, LISC and Enterprise as prime examples of how Chase partners with organizations in serving low-income communities."  said Matthew Reilein, Division Manager, New Markets Tax Credit Group, JPMorgan Chase.  "This project reinforces the need for the New Markets Tax Credit program.  Chase is proud to be part of the YWCA transaction and looks forward to its successful completion."

The project will produce over 900 jobs, including 60 jobs dedicated to train job corps students on the construction of the new building.  "We congratulate the YWCA of Los Angeles, the Department of Labor, and their many partners who helped make the development of this new facility possible," said Maria Barry, Community Development Banking executive. "Economic development is an important priority for Bank of America Merrill Lynch and we are pleased that we were able to leverage our capabilities and expertise to support this job-creation effort."

The campus will benefit the Los Angeles Job Corps center and the population served. LAJC provides residential and non-residential programming at no cost to homeless, emancipated, and at-risk youth ages 16-24. Currently, 735 participants are served daily, of which 380 are residents and 355 are non-residents. Annually, approximately 1,200 youth are served (60% female and 40% male population), and it is estimated that 65% of residents in the program are homeless or at risk of homelessness. "As part of our $700 million commitment to the city of Los Angeles, Enterprise is pleased to help finance this state-of-the-art facility that will offer much needed services, training and homes to at-risk youth," said Jeff Schaffer, vice president and Los Angeles Impact Market Leader, Enterprise Community Partners. "Our mission is to help people to move up and out of poverty, and the YWCA Job Corps training program gives young people valuable tools and the housing needed to make that happen."

The Job Corps Urban Campus is being constructed to replace old and outdated service facilities, many of which were built in the 1920's. In addition, the Urban Campus will create a "campus" environment where core Job Corps services are consolidated in one centralized area. It will bring together all residents under one roof (currently being housed at Studio Club in Hollywood and Case Hotel building in downtown LA), contain all medical and supportive services, as well as house the YWCA Administrative Offices. "CRA/LA has worked with Faye Washington and her team since 2003 when we provided $2 million to purchase this site with complete faith that one day the vision for the YWCA Urban Campus would become a reality," said Calvin Hollis, Interim CEO of CRA/LA and President of LADF. "This project demonstrates what can be accomplished with creativity, perseverance and private/ public partnerships such as the New Markets Tax Credits program," Hollis added.

The Urban Campus is specifically designed to improve trainee success by removing barriers and through facilitating a more streamlined service delivery model. The new campus will also allow for much needed space and service capacity increases, most importantly by increasing residential capacity and vastly expanding the health facilities.

Now under construction, the Urban Campus is centered in the heart of downtown Los Angeles' South Park business district. The seven story, 154,000 square foot building will contain a state of the art library, computer lab, modernized medical and dental clinic and infirmary, classrooms and residential units for 400 students. The YWCA GLA has served the LA area since 1894 and began administering the Los Angeles Job Corps Program in 1965. Job Corps employs a holistic career development training model that integrates the teaching of academic, vocational, employability skills, social competencies and wellness/health services.  

"I commend Faye Washington, CEO of YWCA of Greater Los Angeles, and her entire team for their vision, dedication, commitment and perseverance in making the dream of a new Urban Job Corps Campus in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles a reality," said Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34), who represents Downtown and worked to facilitate the project on the federal level. "Under Faye's able leadership, the YWCA of Greater LA runs the Job Corps program for the Los Angeles Area, which has trained hundreds of successful young men and women for entry into the area's workforce. With struggling schools and high school dropout rates exceeding 50 percent in major cities such as Los Angeles, Job Corps is a proven lifeline for young adults eager for a second chance and an opportunity to reach their educational goals. I am especially proud that, when complete, the new urban campus will serve as a prototype for other urban centers around the country."

Event photos available on Getty Images/WireImage.  Photo credit Arnold Turner.

About YWCA Job Corps Urban Campus

About Job Corps Program

The YWCA Greater Los Angeles (YWCA/GLA) has been administering the Job Corps program in Los Angeles since 1965 on behalf of the United States Department of Labor.  This program is the nation's largest and most comprehensive education, vocational and social skills training program.  Job Corps employs a holistic career development training model that integrates the teaching of academic, vocational, employability skills, social competencies and wellness/health services. The LAJCC is currently operated out of six buildings in downtown Los Angeles around South Hill Street and West 11th Street with an additional residential facility in Hollywood.  The average length of the participation program is 10 months, though trainees may be enrolled up to 24 months, depending upon need.

About the YWCA Greater Los Angeles

The YWCA/GLA has served the Los Angeles community since 1894. It is a women's membership movement built on the mission of eliminating racism and empowering women. Each year more than 60,000 individuals a year are served by the YWCA/GLA through various programs including affordable child-care, after school youth programs, the LAJC and the Sexual Assault Crisis Service. For more information, visit www.ywcagla.org.

SOURCE The YWCA Greater Los Angeles