Boulder County this spring will launch the Young Leaders Academy to support low-income teenagers and young people of color to grow their educational, professional and leadership skills.
Community Action Programs and Workforce Boulder County through Feb. 26 will be taking applications for the first cohort of the program scheduled to begin in early March, according to a flyer. A second cohort will begin in early June.
“(We) developed the concept of this program to address some of the disparities in opportunity and access for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color,) 16- to 24-year-olds,” said Tonja Ahijevych, program manager at the Boulder County Department of Community Services. “The academy creates a well-supported track to get (participants) on their way to good careers and leadership opportunities in the area.”
The six-month program will begin with a six-week coaching series on leadership training, financial literacy and career development and exploration. Youths will then participate in one of three tracks to attain a high school equivalency diploma, work-based learning in the form of internships or apprenticeships, or occupational-based learning through the completion of a trade skill or educational certificate, Ahijevych said.
Certain underserved populations have been left out of opportunities to advance their education and careers, and this program creates direct access points to opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable, Ahijevych said.
Income and wealth inequality continues to increase and women and people of color at all education levels overwhelmingly make up most of the workforce in lower-paying jobs, according to a 2019 fact sheet from the Center for American Progress.
Median weekly earnings for Black and Hispanic men and women working full-time jobs were lower than those of whites, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics news release reporting national 2020 fourth quarter weekly earnings.
The county program will go beyond information and coaching and provide opportunities and support for participants to put concepts into practice, Program Manager Alexis Goodyear said.
“The vision is not to just set goals with career paths, but also having the audacity to dream big,” she said. “If someone wants to work at a hair salon, we can help with that, but maybe the bigger dream is actually owning a business ... ”
Workshops and workgroup-style sessions will be woven throughout the program so participants also get a chance to connect with peers to implement the concepts they are learning, Goodyear said.
Multiple partners will be supporting the program including Social Venture Partners Boulder County, OUT Boulder County, local businesses and several community-based organizations such as the Emergency Family Assistance Association, the OUR Center, Sister Carmen Community Center and the Boulder County Talent Collaborative.
The goal of the program is to ultimately create a local career menu for young professionals focused on five areas: education, government and nonprofit, health care, information technology, trades or labor, and manufacturing, according to Goodyear.
Forty participants are expected to join the program this year, with 20 people accepted into the first cohort.
An allowance of $6,000 will be provided to all participants to support education, leadership and employment goals, which will look different depending on the person and can include paying for classes for those finishing a degree,covering the cost of a certification or stipends through an approved internship or apprenticeship, Goodyear said.
“We are looking to areas that are growing and vital in the community, and we want this to lead to long-term employment options for people,” Ahijevych said. “Cultivating future leaders and entrepreneurs from underrepresented backgrounds, creating a pipeline of diverse talent that will shift the culture of a variety of sectors across Boulder County.”
The program was established through funding from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES, Act, and will continue to be shaped by the feedback of participating youth in future years.
For more information, visit the website or contact Goodyear at 720-822-3408 or [email protected].
