Youths take chances on off-island training

Local youths trooped to the Multi-Purpose Center yesterday to grab a unique opportunity of landing a fully-subsidized off-island vocational education experience offered by the Hawaii Job Corps Center.

Visiting Job Corps Business and Community Liaison Jack Tuttle disclosed the firm will initially select five eligible youths from the group of applicants who showed up at the recruitment site yesterday, with high hopes of qualifying for the much sought-after program.

The Honolulu-based official added the next batch of participants, if any, to be drawn from the Northern Marianas highly depends on how the first five fare in Hawaii once they are selected.

“If those five seem to be doing well, then we’ll bring in some more. What we don’t want is a situation where five people come and three of them decide that they want to come home because they are homesick. If that happened, it would jeopardize others who are waiting in line,” warned Mr. Tuttle.

Laborious tasks of bringing participants all the way to Hawaii or even the US mainland for intensive training is highly expensive to waste on delinquent applicants, according to the visiting official.

Once in Hawaii, participants are expected to undergo a four-week intensive course on workplace readiness, where they will be introduced to the various vocational programs.

“This is so they can form their own opinion about which one they would like to go into,” he said.

After a month, the youths shall start a regular training schedule where they will be required to attend academic classes.

When deemed ready, participants will be allowed to get involved in actual hands-on workplace learning with their respective employers.

According to Mr. Tuttle, the company has seen an outstanding number of successful Job Corps training graduates, recording that 70 percent of the program’s participants attain their desired goals.

“We have many success stories to speak of. First of all, we consider every graduate a success. There’s a group who does extraordinarily well, people who go on to four-year universities, people who are studying to become licensed practical nurses and registered nurses, people who are going to advanced programs in food services, automotive repair, and others,” he said.

“But we don’t expect that everybody’s going to be able to do that. But we are always pleased if they do their best and become graduates, equipped with tools to get quality jobs,” Mr. Tuttle added.

The ongoing recruitment efforts is being conducted in conjunction with the Workforce Investment Agency, in this program eyed to nurture responsible, employable, and productive citizens.

Applicants must have basic skills deficiency, homeless, a parent, a school dropout, a runaway, a foster child, willing to sign a consent form for selective service registration (male), a US citizen or legal US resident, free from serious behavioral problems, meet low income criteria, and have parental consent if under 18.

Through the training program, WIA and the Job Corps, in a sealed Memorandum of Understanding, agreed to promote academic, vocational, and social development training to young men and women ages 16 to 24.

Vocational and educational training programs ranging from construction, mechanics, electronics, computers, culinary arts, and general education development will be offered to chosen applicants.

All training expenses will be shouldered by Job Corps including accommodations and subsistence allowance.