Policy & Practice June 2015

partnering for impact

By Dorothy Stoneman and David Abromowitz

Partnering for Social Mobility The U.S. Department of Labor’s YouthBuild Program

This article is a part of our ongoing series “Partnering For Impact.”Working with our partners at the National Human Services Assembly (NHSA), this section highlights innovative public-private partnerships around the country. employed, and about one-third of whom also have a criminal record. They participate full-time for about a year, spending 50 percent of their time completing their secondary education in supportive individualized academic classes, and the other half working Y outhBuild is a social innova- tion designed to break the cycle of poverty for disadvantaged young adults. It has grown to partial scale through federal program funding over 23 years with bipartisan support through four administrations. A key factor in its successful growth has been a strong government delivery systemwith an unusually effective public-private partnership, including a national nonprofit support organiza- tion (YouthBuild USA, Inc.) working with the federal agency and the private sector. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) YouthBuild programmodel dem- onstrates key features worth emulating for scaling up other evidence-based programs. Further, YouthBuild itself should now be taken to full scale, which YouthBuild USA defines as reaching the limit of demand from young people or the limit of organizational capacity to deliver quality programs. Program Design: YouthBuild engages low-income 16 to 24 year olds who have left high school without a diploma, are unemployed or under-

Participants fromYouthBuild Philadelphia.

building affordable housing. This holistic, multifaceted approach con- sistently produces results that annual outcome data and numerous research studies of YouthBuild have found to be positive. The program was created in East Harlem in 1978 by a local nonprofit organization. YouthBuild USA, Inc. was formed in 1988 as the nonprofit support center to orchestrate the process of replicating this program. Before it was adopted federally, YouthBuild USA had replicated the program in 20 locations and estab- lished the YouthBuild brand. Federal Authorization: YouthBuild USA organized a National YouthBuild Coalition that worked with Congress

in paid, well-supervised construction training teams building affordable housing for homeless and low-income people in their communities. Academic and construction components are woven together in a strong, positive peer culture. Caring adult staff mentors counsel students individually and in groups, emphasizing com- munity service, leadership, and civic engagement. The vast majority of youth complete YouthBuild ready for college, other post-secondary education, or regis- tered apprenticeships and/or jobs, often in construction. They have also internalized the ethic of service. Many YouthBuild students earn AmeriCorps education awards for their service

Illustration by Chris Campbell Photograph via Flickr user GSK

Policy&Practice June 2015 22