Investing in youth to rebuild our future

[ProSense]

Investing in youth to rebuild our future

By Dorothy Stoneman, president and founder of YouthBuild USA

Nearly a third of all public high school students — and roughly half of all those who live in low-income communities — fail to graduate with their class. Those staggering statistics add up to more than a million American high school dropouts every year.

We know that young people who leave high school without a diploma, for whatever reason, are very likely to be unemployed and mired in poverty; but this long, hard recession is exacerbating their already bleak employment prospects. Today, many young people from low-income families are experiencing Depression-level joblessness with nearly 40 percent of African-American youth and 36 percent of Hispanic youth, ages 16 to 19, unemployed in June. Rural white and Native American youth face the same challenges.

The good news is that Congress has a chance to do something about this unacceptably high level of youth unemployment decimating under-resourced communities that already were struggling before the recession.

<...>

A House Appropriations panel recently marked up a bill containing President Obama’s request for employment and training programs administered by the Labor Department.

It supported the president’s request for $120 million for YouthBuild. The Senate Appropriations Committee also recently marked up the bill and included $110 million for YouthBuild. Program directors and students across the country are profoundly grateful for this support from both the House and the Senate committees, led by Representatives Obey and Tiahrt, and Senators Harkin and Cochran. We are grateful to Rep. John Lewis for his leadership and to Senators John Kerry and Olympia Snowe, who recruited 33 senators to support the president’s request of $120 million for YouthBuild.

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[Turbineguy]

1. I told my students yesterday

I was recruiting taxpayers.

[ProSense]

2. ? n/t

[Turbineguy]

4. People who take my classes

generally obtain higher incomes afterward, therefore pay more in taxes. I'm hoping to collect SS in 7 years.

An increase in employment would result in greater tax receipts. N'est pas?

[ProSense]

5. Is that a successful approach? n/t

[Turbineguy]

6. Well, since most people

seem to want a job (or a promotion), the government needs the money, I would say, yes!

[ProSense]

3. No comment? Would anyone want to explain their objection to this commentary? n/t

[YvonneCa]

7. Thanks for posting this...

...Prosense. I completely support the goals of organizations like YouthBuild. I have had experience working with Americorps...sort of indirectly...and the goals of YouthBuild seem about the same. I am sure the motivation of these and other similar groups are of the highest order...to address the needs of youth.

Some may be concerned about certain sponsors. I am not. I do not doubt the good intentions of all. What DOES concern me is when the more powerful sponsors' voices drown out educators in the debate. Does that make sense? :)