Job Training Reaches People Aged 16 to 60

William B. Stubblefield, chairman of the Black Youth Leadership Development Program, talks with vocational program participant Stacey Richards. Richard's daughters accompanied her to the program.

Red Cross assistance often means more than disaster relief or blood banks. Today's American Red Cross is reaching out to communities with programs specifically designed to help those who need it most. In Rochester, NY, that help is found in adult and youth vocational programs.

Fourteen years ago, the American Red Cross Greater Rochester Chapter recognized a need for community members to improve their work and job search skills. The Employment Readiness and Supervised Job Search programs allow participants to complete a two-week classroom training course focusing on personal development and employment preparation. Participants range in age from 16 to 60 and meet with a staff member once a month during their six-month independent job search. Over 1,000 residents have already completed the program.

Reaching out to the community also means preparing youth for the future. In the Foster Care Youth Work program, the Greater Rochester Chapter focused on increasing self-sufficiency of area teens in foster care. Participating teens progress through a series of Life Skills Workshops followed by a six-week paid employment program that focuses on their career of choice. Two new youth programs, geared toward reaching in-school and out-of-school youth, remind participants of the relationship between education and successful employment.

Pat Marks, director of the employment programs, said students have a common need to have hope and a way of obtaining their dreams. She realized that students need to feel personal responsibility for their success. "So many times, participants do not have this understanding or perspective when they come to class. I know we made a difference."

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