Contracts with nine local providers will directly serve targeted populations of 17-21 year-olds with holistic workforce development and education services
Philadelphia—Philadelphia Works was joined today by Mayor Jim Kenney, School District Superintendent Dr. William Hite, and other public officials, to announce the release of $6 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Youth Development (TANF YD) contracts to nine youth service providers. The new contracts will fund targeted year-round employment and education opportunities to four distinct populations of young adults (age 17-21):
- Youth identified as having autism or an intellectual/developmental disability;
- Youth who have been adjudicated (court-involved within the past five years);
- Youth who are aging or have aged out of foster care;
- Youth who have graduated from a School District of Philadelphia Career & Technical Education healthcare program.
“These newly funded youth programs will allow us to deliver highly targeted services to some of our most vulnerable young people,” said H. Patrick Clancy, President and CEO of Philadelphia Works. “As the city’s workforce development board, it is our role to create innovative solutions to the workforce challenges faced by all Philadelphians. These investments will directly serve youth who are at critical junctures, giving them the tools and training to successfully transition from young adulthood into the workforce. I’d like to thank Youth Standing Committee co-chairs, Dan Fitzpatrick and Pat Eiding, and the entire board of directors for their guidance and diligence to launch this exciting initiative.”
The organizations receiving funding will be responsible for connecting young people to work experiences, customized/supported employment, and unsubsidized employment opportunities. They will also provide peripheral services including on-the-job training, career guidance, legal services, financial literacy, high-school equivalency completion, and a range of other supports. The goal of the targeted efforts is to complement and leverage existing funding sources (TANF, Medicare/Medicaid) for identified youth populations, and provide a critical piece of employment-focused support that will lead each young person into a career pathway.
“In a city where deep poverty has kept generations of young people from achieving a better life, this important first step will have an immediate impact in a critical area of need,” added Mayor Jim Kenney. “This funding will help to connect the various programs that serve these targeted populations of young people, bringing together diverse stakeholders to meet both the needs of employers and young career-seekers alike. I congratulate Philadelphia Works and the funding recipients as we unite around the shared goal of expanding opportunities for all Philadelphia residents.”
The contract recipients and amounts are as follows:
| Provider | Target Population | Contract Amount |
| JEVS Human Services | Autism/IDD | $ 354,178.00 |
| Educational Data Systems, Inc. | Healthcare CTE Graduates | $ 629,846.60 |
| Philadelphia Youth Network | Healthcare CTE Graduates | $ 552,500.00 |
| Temple University – College of Education | Healthcare CTE Graduates | $ 637,500.00 |
| Eckerd Connects | Adjudicated Youth | $ 453,288.00 |
| JEVS Human Services | Adjudicated Youth | $ 609,268.95 |
| YouthBuild Philadelphia Charter School | Adjudicated Youth | $ 344,675.00 |
| Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia | Aging/Aged Out of Foster Care | $ 528,081.00 |
| Communities in Schools of Philadelphia | Aging/Aged Out of Foster Care | $ 637,500.00 |
| JEVS Human Services | Aging/Aged Out of Foster Care | $ 300,000.00 |
| Temple University – Center for Social Policy and Community Development | Aging/Aged Out of Foster Care | $ 614,110.55 |
| Valley Youth House | Aging/Aged Out of Foster Care | $ 626,800.20 |
“In terms of opportunity youth, dedicated employment funding is often a
‘missing piece’ that prevents the individual from reaching
self-sustainability,” said Dan Fitzpatrick, President of Citizens Bank of
Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, and Co-Chair of the Philadelphia Works
Board Youth Standing Committee. “These new contracts will provide that critical
link. We are not proposing duplicative
services for our target populations, many of which already receive some other
form of government assistance, but a holistic approach to youth development
that integrates education, training and unsubsidized employment as key elements
of an individualized success plan.”
The target population to be served by the new contracts are youth age 17-21 who are Philadelphia residents, out-of-school or current high-school seniors, and identified as one of the target populations above. Providers are required to serve at least one of the target populations, but several have submitted multi-faceted proposals to serve one or more.
Providers will deliver year-round direct services to youth and young adults, including recruiting the target populations, identifying specific needs, and partnering with employers to develop work experiences that align with high priority occupations. Providers will then enroll participants into paid work experiences, ensure payment of all youth wages, and provide quarterly programmatic evaluations to Philadelphia Works to ensure goals are being met.
The contracts are being awarded for an 18-month period, with initial operations expected to begin immediately, and full-scale operations to begin in March, 2018.
About Philadelphia Works
Philadelphia Works is the
city’s Workforce Development Board, investing in solutions and services to grow
Philadelphia’s economy by connecting employers to workforce talent and career
seekers to jobs. We influence the public policies that support economic growth,
and optimize funding and resources to invest in regional solutions to build a
skilled and thriving workforce. For more information about our dedicated board
members and staff, workforce research, labor market data, services and
initiatives, and to view success stories, please visit https://www.philaworks.org.
Contact:
Alex Styer
Bellevue Communications
[email protected] 215-893-4293
