Even if they have the desire, At-Risk youth–those from low-income, culturally-deprived and/or disruptive home lives–usually lack the means to create a promising future for themselves. The purpose of the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Job Corps Program is to take in such youth and provide them with the vocational and life skills necessary for creating a satisfying, life-long career.
“We are designed for those young people who have failed in the traditional setting,” explains Ruby Brown, Center Director of the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Job Corps. “Job Corps is a safe haven where young people who have been labeled At-Risk are taught to dream and realize that achieving success is a reality.”
Serving mainly youth between the ages of 16 and 24–mainly high school drop-outs–our governmentally-funded program grants all students full scholarships. The YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Job Corps is ranked in the top 20% of the programs of its type in the country, and is composed of three basic components:
• Career Prep
Upon arriving to Job Corps, some students are operating on a third or fourth grade level. We instruct students at their current level, at their own pace. Our goal is to help all students attain either a high school diploma or a G.E.D. Additionally, we teach students basic functioning skills, such as banking, how to find an apartment, how to get and keep a job, how to budget, and how to shop wisely. We also educate about insurance and medical coverage, and offer child care assistance and roommate counseling.
• Career Development
We provide training in just about every kind of trade a young person could desire. These include such fields as business, technology, health, auto mechanics, and construction, to name a few.
• Career Transition Services
We have many national Job Corps employers who recruit our graduates, which include such companies as Aamco, Midas Muffler, Kaiser Permanente, and major banks. Once students are placed in their initial job, we are responsible for keeping track of them for up to a year after their initial placement. If necessary, we will offer them additional support during this time.
On our grounds we have two residential housing facilities and a full medical and dental department. The Job Corps Program also includes counseling services, driver’s education courses, and a wide range of cultural and recreational activities. Students can stay up to two and sometimes three years to build the necessary skill proficiency to become fully employable.
“All in all, we give students a complete re-socialization. They get a job and become tax-paying citizens,” concludes Brown. “That’s how they pay back the federal government. Every time we have a success, we have another person off the welfare role. So Job Corp works, and so do its graduates.”
YWCA Sexual Assault Crisis Program
When Maria* first came to the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Sexual Assault Crisis Program, she didn’t have a job, was unable to maintain an intimate relationship, and couldn’t look anyone in the eye. After four years of receiving counseling and personalized support through our program, she now not only looks people in the eyes when she speaks to them but also holds a successful job and has since gotten married.
“We see people as their most vulnerable selves,”says Sharon Shelton, Senior Manager of the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Sexual Assault Crisis Program,“and it’s amazing how resilient they can be, even those who have been sexually assaulted repeatedly.”
****
Our Sexual Assault Crisis Program is an intervention and prevention program that seeks to improve the quality of life for those victimized by sexual assault. We offer support and healing for survivors and promote awareness of issues resulting from sexual violence. Our free services are available to those 12 years of age and older.
While offering sexual assault survivors personalized, emotional support, we also focus heavily on teaching prevention techniques. Our services include counseling; 24-hour accompaniment to hospitals, court, or police stations directly following an attack; self-defense classes; and prevention and community education.
Although the state only funds this program for short-term counseling (10-12 weeks at one time a week), the staff tends to hold onto clients much longer. “Statistically, if you have been sexually assaulted and do not receive psychological assistance, the chances of your being assaulted again are greatly increased,” Shelton explains.
For this reason, staff and volunteers actively go out into the community and seek survivors of sexual assault, particularly those who haven’t dealt with it in their past. “A lot of times a 16-year-old will come to us who has been recently sexually assaulted,” Shelton continues, “and we find out that not only has her mother been sexually assaulted, but her grandmother has been as well. So we try to prevent this from spreading down into second and third generations.”
Once women have faced their own issues, they are ultimately urged to became a volunteer to give back to the community. “But they must first learn to take care of themselves before they can help someone else,” concludes Shelton. “ And that takes time to do.”
*name has been changed.
Encore Plus
Donna,* a 52 year old Philippine lady had just arrived in Los Angeles alone and had discovered a lump on her breast. Not knowing what to do, she went the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Encore Plus Program. Unfortunately, her lump turned out to be cancerous.
“We were here to talk to her on a daily basis,” recalls Maria Macias, Program Manager of the Encore Plus Program at the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles “and we were able to go with her on every single doctor visit.” Donna went on to have radiation, chemotherapy and a mastectomy, and the YWCA was with her the whole way through. “She was one of those who if it hadn’t been for our program where we could take her by the hand, it would’ve been a lot more difficult for her.”
****
All women are concerned about their health, but many don’t know how to attain, or simply can’t afford, medical services. Many women – often low income, ethnic women – are unaware of the risks of cancer and the importance of early detection methods. Many also face barriers in accessing such services due to language, financial limitations, or other restrictions.
The YWCA of Greater Los Angeles’ Encore Plus Program provides ethnically diverse, low income, uninsured, and under-insured women with free, early detection breast and cervical screenings. We offer our services to all ages but focus primarily on those 40 and over. Women in this age bracket are not only at the highest risk for breast cancer but also tend to face the most obstacles when it comes to acquiring appropriate medical services.
In addition to providing screenings, Encore Plus also holds free workshops throughout the community to raise awareness of breast and cervical health. We are also there to guide a woman to the next step when further treatment is required, and will often accompany women to doctor appointments to serve as a translator, or simply for emotional support.
Our program provides over 6,000 women with breast cancer screenings through mammography annually. Over 1,100 women a year are educated in breast self-examination, and approximately 20 to 30 screenings are conducted in a month throughout the Los Angeles area.
“Many times women are diagnosed with Cancer, but either due to fear or a lack of knowledge, they don’t go back for treatment,” shares Macias.“A lot of women don’t understand their results because of the language, or even because they don’t know exactly what they mean. Others are simply fearful and avoid it altogether. We make sure that these women go in for treatment and get the appropriate care when it is required.”
* name has been changed