|
Congressman Tom Petri today announced the US Department of Labor has awarded CAP Services, Inc. a $412,687 grant to continue its Fresh Start Program in Waushara County. The grant was made through the Youthbuild Program and was one of only 96 made nationwide, and one of four in Wisconsin.
"To succeed in the modern world you need both a general education and specific training. The Fresh Start Program is a practical way to get young people on the right track with useful skills," Petri said.
Fresh Start is a program for at-risk youths ages 16 through 24. The goal of the program is to help students obtain their high school equivalency degree while developing workplace and life skills.
Students attend classes two to three hours a day and work with a housing professional to learn how to build single family houses the remainder of the day. The program is held daily Monday through Thursday, year-round, and students are paid for the work they do. Students must adhere to a rigorous schedule for attaining their educational goals and improving their work skills.
New components were added to the program this year, including welding training. Through a cooperative project with Fox Valley Technical College and the Wautoma School District, Fresh Start participants are provided with welding training that will result in their earning two credits in MIG welding, two in TIG welding and two in blueprint reading. According to CAP Vice President Mary Patoka, it was this last innovation that helped CAP’s proposal score sufficient points to be funded. Additionally, participants will complete an entrepreneurial track offered by Fox Valley Tech College (including its Fab Lab). A new “job coach” position will also be added to facilitate job placement and retention of participants as they seek employment.
There are currently nine students in the program and the new funding will serve an additional 20. Program Coordinator Clayton Pietsch said the crew is working on its ninth house with completion expected in April 2008. All of the homes built are sold to households with low- or moderate-incomes with help from CAP’s Home Buyers Assistance Program.
According to Pietsch, Fresh Start participants built most of the houses in the Dafoe subdivision in Wautoma and they are currently building houses in the new Sandcrest subdivision on Wautoma’s south side. In addition to new construction, the Fresh Start crew has also provided assistance on Habitat for Humanity, CAP weatherization and community service projects
Other funding for the program comes from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, the Wisconsin Department of Corrections’ Division of Juvenile Corrections, the Wisconsin Department of Commerce’s Division of Housing, local school districts and the City of Wautoma. More than 25 local Wautoma businesses have worked with the program to provide both the workplace and life skills education.
To date, 47 students have obtained their high school degrees or GEDs through the program and 24 more increased their math and reading skills by at least two grade levels. Youth interested in enrolling in the program can contact Pietsch at 920-787-2735.
CAP Services is a private, non-profit corporation serving Marquette, Outagamie, Portage, Waupaca and Waushara Counties. It has been offering programs that help low-income people attain economic and emotional self-sufficiency since 1966.
|
