HDC in the News
Housing Development Corp. of Northwest Oregon Receives Grant
Housing Development Corp. of Northwest Oregon has received a grant of $25,000 from the Northwest Area Oregon Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation for expansion of marketing and fund development activities. The grant was made by The Oregon Community Foundation as part of their initiative to Strengthen Capacity for Community-Based Poverty Reduction in rural Oregon.
Read about it here
HDC program helps Forest Grove dropouts achieve success!!!
Western Washington County's only program helping out-of-school youth prepare for jobs and get GED certificates has begun with flying colors.
The Listos! Program serves low-income youth aged 16 - 21 years who have left high school without graduating. It places special emphasis on helping youth from Spanish-speaking families because Hispanic youth have the highest dropout rates. Reasons for dropping out vary, including going to work in order to help the family financially, pregnancy and parenting, or family crises like homelessness.
A program of the Housing Development Corporation of Northwest Oregon (HDC), "Listos" means "quick, ready, or prepared." The program embodies the 1981 vision of its Washington County founders by helping working families in poverty. A contract with Worksystems, Inc. of Portland and a grant from the City of Forest Grove Enhancement Fund support the program.
Listos! started in February, and by June its first student, Kristina Byrns, had already graduated andn ow works in a Forest Grove real estate office. Three students have also graduated, five more are preparing to take the GED test, and two are on their way to local colleges. A total of 12 students enrolled in the first year of the program. Several of the 16 to 21 year olds are parents with young children.
Hermelinda Hernandez, 18, a young mother who recently obtained her GED, said; "Listos is a great program because it helps young adults get to where they need to go in order to have success in life." Hernandez will be studying at Concordia University in Portland in the fall.
Job training is an important part of the program. While students are working toward their GED certificates, they also receive pre-employment training, including how to prepare a resume and interview for jobs, how to dress and conduct themselves professionally while on the job, how to communicate with supervisors and peers, and how to problem-solve in a variety of common job situations.
HDC Youth Services Coordinator Stephanie Vasquez-Pettit, herself an alumna of Forest Grove High School before graduating from Portland State University, says the program is successful because "We're helping the students not only to pass the GED test, which is a basic requirement for most jobs, but also with things no one else has helped them with in their lives before, like being punctual, having good attendance, appropriate work attitudes and behaviors. A lot of it is basic, but if they have no one else to help them, they can't move beyond."
Mrs. Vasquez-Pettit is looking for employers in the Portland metro area willing to partner with HDC's Listos! program. Opportunities sought include workplace tours, introduction to the qualifications required to gain entry-level jobs, and job shadowing. Employers willing to provide training and supervision are eligible for an important benefit -- the Listos program will pay all or a portion of the compensation for Listos youth. If you can help, please contact Mrs. Vasquez-Pettit at 503-359-7963.
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