National Nonprofit Year Up Launches New Site in Dallas to Train Disconnected Youth for Jobs in Fortune 500 Companies
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) February 23, 2016 -- Year Up, a national nonprofit organization that collaborates with Fortune 500 firms to train disconnected youth and prepare them for jobs in high-demand sectors, is expanding to Dallas with the help of a $1 million lead investment from AT&T, as part of AT&T Aspire.
The new site launch will be announced today at the forum “Educational Attainment: A Pathway to Prosperity,” hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas at 2200 N. Pearl Street from 7:15—9:45 a.m. Year Up founder and CEO Gerald Chertavian will speak at the event.
“Thanks to the generous support from AT&T, commitments from top businesses and the leadership of El Centro College, Year Up Dallas will begin serving young adults in August 2016,” said Chertavian. “Not only will they gain the technical and professional skills to enter an exciting career, they’ll also receive college credits and be on track to complete an associate’s degree from El Centro.”
“Through AT&T Aspire, we are investing in young people to prepare them for success in school and beyond,” said Nicole Anderson, AVP, Social Innovation, AT&T Services. “By working with innovative organizations like Year Up to expand their services to Dallas, more students will have the skills to meet the needs of the future workforce.
Year Up is planning to locate its Dallas site at El Centro College, part of the Dallas Community College District. Students will spend one semester taking technical and professional skills classes taught by El Centro and Year Up staff, and will then spend the next semester participating in a full-time, credit-bearing internship at a corporate partner firm.
“Companies in Dallas recognize that local young adults can be a significant source of motivated, skilled entry-level talent,” said Chertavian. “We’ve seen the strongest employer demand of any site launch to date, with more than 30 internship seats already confirmed at Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Liberty Mutual, and Dallas Children’s Health.”
Founded in Boston in 2000, Year Up currently has sites in 16 cities. The program provides low-income young adults, ages 18-24, with six months of technical and professional skills training followed by a six-month corporate internship. Eighty-five percent of graduates are employed or attending college fulltime within four months of completing the program, with average starting salaries of $36,000/year.
About Year Up Inc.
Year Up's mission is to close the Opportunity Divide by providing urban young adults with the skills, experience, and support that will empower them to reach their potential through professional careers and higher education. Year Up achieves this mission through a high support, high expectation model that combines marketable job skills, stipends, internships and college credits. Its holistic approach focuses on students' professional and personal development to place these young adults on a viable path to economic self-sufficiency. Year Up currently serves more than 3,000 students a year at sites in Arizona, Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Jacksonville, the National Capital Region, New York City, Philadelphia, Providence, Puget Sound, San Francisco Bay Area, and South Florida. To learn more, visit http://www.yearup.org or http://www.youtube.com/yearupinc.
About Philanthropy & Social Innovation at AT&T
AT&T Inc. is committed to advancing education, strengthening communities and improving lives. Through its community initiatives, AT&T has a long history of investing in projects that create learning opportunities; promote academic and economic achievement; or address community needs. AT&T Aspire is AT&T’s signature philanthropic initiative that drives innovation in education by bringing diverse resources to bear on the issue including funding, technology, employee volunteerism, and mentoring. Through Aspire, we’ve passed the $250 million mark on our plan to invest $350 million in education from 2008-2017.
Roberto Zeledon, Year Up, http://www.yearup.org, +1 857-305-9995, [email protected]
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