12/18/2009
Arbor Sponsors the Mega Job Expo in Maryland
12/07/2009
ResCare – New Deal in the UK
12/01/2009
2nd Arbor E&T Bake Sale raises $500 for SHARE
11/25/2009
Notification of Breach of Private Information
11/23/2009
Mon Valley Bridge Open House
11/20/2009
SuperJobs Seasonal Hiring
11/18/2009
National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week 2009, Allen County
11/16/2009
Arbor Welcomes New Texas Regional Vice President
11/06/2009
A moment to honor our veterans
10/22/2009
Arbor Fights the Flu
10/16/2009
ResCare Comments on Indiana Governor’s Announcement
10/07/2009
In the News: Arbor and Green Guide Network
10/01/2009
Tremendous Project in Cincinnati
9/28/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Five
9/22/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Four
9/15/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Three
9/15/2009
Arbor Sponsors Literacy Gala
9/08/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview Two
9/01/2009
Five Project Directors: Interview One
8/26/2009
Snohomish County Enlarges Dislocated Worker Program
8/20/2009
Pennsylvania Governor Visits Harrisburg Summer Youth Program
8/18/2009
Canoga Park Job and Resource Fair
8/13/2009
VIPs in SuperJobs Cincy
8/12/2009
U.S. Department of Labor’s 2009 United We Serve Initiative Begins
7/28/2009
An Innovative Summer Youth Project in Oregon
7/21/2009
Tulsa iJobs Program in Full Swing
7/20/2009
ARRA 2009
7/17/2009
Green Strategies Workgroup
7/15/2009
Green Jobs
7/6/2009
Arbor TANF Partnership in Nebraska Receiving Positive Feedback
7/1/2009
Arbor E&T is Thinking Green
An Innovative Summer Youth Project in Oregon
By Jim Maris
Ed. Jamie M. Barnes
his work.
Early on, the Salem Business Team set about contacting employers in the areas surrounding the three youth center locations. Because a large number of strong partnerships were established prior to the announcement of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Business Team quickly found sites willing to accept youth, and because of the diversity of employers, most youth are able to designate their work preferences. Employers have the opportunity to participate in mock interviews with the youth participants, serving to develop interview skills and give the employers a “first look” at prospective candidates.
web-based training.
Using laptops and headsets assigned to each youth, a single Career Coach is able to facilitate training for up to thirty youth at a single setting. The youth, when surveyed after participation, genuinely enjoyed the format and felt they learned a great deal of valuable information. The average pre test score on a 100 point scale is 63, and the average post test score is 87, demonstrating the efficacy of web-based training in workforce development.
Since the outset of the program, 60 youth from the first of two sessions have been placed in jobs ranging from health care to grounds maintenance. Arbor is now receiving a number of requests from employers asking to convert the summer youth into full-time employees. Without exception, the employers have complimented the quality of the youth sent to participate, and many are interested in becoming a part of our year-round WIA workshops. Additionally, a few of the youth employers would like their existing employees to receive similar training.
Given these early results, the Salem Youth Project is confident the second session, set to begin in August, will be every bit as successful as the first. Because of the youth program’s success, Arbor plans to integrate more web-based skills development into the year-round WIA program beginning in September, to include Green Trades, Industrial Arts, Health Care and Computer Literacy. Although the Summer Youth Project was a sudden opportunity, necessitating many hours of planning and hard work, the results promise to benefit Oregon communities for years to come.
