Plenary: A New Legacy – The 21st Century Conservation Service Corps

The 2013 Corpsmembers of the Year, pictured with members of CCC Legacy Chapter #113. 

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Civilian Conservation Corps. The third plenary session of the conference was all about making the connection between the work of the CCC boys during the Great Depression and the work completed by Corps programs operating throughout the country today. The session started with a short film created by Lance and Brandon Kramer of the DC-based Meridian Hill Pictures documentary production company. The film captured the recollections and modern day activities of several men from CCC Legacy Chapter #113, which is based in Maryland. We were very fortunate to have several members of Chapter #113, all of whom served in the CCC over 70 years ago, in attendance at the session.


Sarah Huff, a 2013 Corpsmember of the Year from the California Conservation Corps, delivers an inspiring speech. 

Following the film was a speech delivered by Sarah Huff, a 2013 Corpsmember of the Year from the California Conservation Corps. Sarah shared her story of taking time off from college just to see if the Corps might help her find direction for her future. After joining the Corps, Sarah quickly worked her way through the ranks eventually became a very skilled and trusted wild land firefighter.  

The heart of the session was a panel discussion involving leaders from Corps as well as from the Department of Interior and the Department of Agriculture. The main topic of discussion was how the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps (based off the model of the CCC) will be implemented as part of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors Initiative. The speakers talked about how Corps can play a critical role in restoring America’s conservation infrastructure and developing the next generation of conservation leaders.

Left to Right: Harry Bruell, Meryl Harrell, Michael Gale, Jeff Parker, Destry Jarvis

Speakers included Michael Gale, Director of the Office of Youth, Partnerships and Service at the U.S. Department of the Interior; Meryl Harrell, Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture; Jeff Parker, Executive Director of Northwest Youth Corps; Destry Jarvis, President of ORAPS, LLC; and Harry Bruell, President and CEO of Southwest Conservation Corps, who served as moderator. 

Workforce Investment Act Introduced in U.S. House of Representatives

From the Office of U.S. Congressman Rubén Hinojosa

Washington, D.C.- Today-Congressman Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX-15) along with Congressman John Tierney (D-MA) and ranking member of the Education and the Workforce Committee, U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA) introduced the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The introduction of this bill is an effort to modernize WIA so as to better assist out-of-work Americans, including the long-term unemployed, and to acquire the skills that growing industries need.

“This is a critical time in the United States for American workers and adult learners to have access to the education and job training they need to increase their literacy skills and to acquire good, family sustaining jobs,” said U.S. Rep. Hinojosa. “What the Workforce Investment Act does, is it creates a 21st century delivery system for adult education and workforce training that leads to career pathways, increased educational opportunities, civic participation and economic self-sufficiency for our nation’s increasingly diverse workforce.”

WIA would help workers find jobs and careers through strategic partnerships with in-demand sector employers, community colleges, labor organizations, and non-profits.

Congressman Hinojosa added, “In my district it is especially important that we assist lower-skilled border residents who often lack basic education attainment and English proficiency to access workforce training and educational opportunities that lead to good jobs and careers.”

The Democratic substitute streamlines and improves workforce program services. It authorizes funding for President Obama’s Community College to Career Fund and expands the role of community colleges in job training. It supports integrated adult education and job training. WIA authorizes new and more targeted investments in adult education and it codifies integrated English literacy and civics education.

“This legislation connects American workers to jobs and careers in high-demand industries and sectors,” said U.S. Rep. Hinojosa. “It also supports them in acquiring industry recognized credentials, postsecondary education, employment counseling services and the support services they need to obtain employment.”

The Democratic Workforce Investment Act authorizes increased investments in technology and digital literacy, as well as enhances online training and other technological improvements which allow rural residents to receive training in high growth and high demand occupations.

Enacted in 1998, the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) created local workforce investment boards (WIB) made up of community stakeholders who decide on how to respond to local economic needs. However, supporters of workforce training programs agree that improvements to the current system are needed to make the program work better for those looking for a good job, local communities, businesses and taxpayers. The Workforce Investment Act of 2013 would accomplish this by focusing on finding workers jobs and careers through strategic partnerships with in-demand sector employers, community colleges, labor organizations, and non-profits.

Specifically, the Workforce Investment Act of 2013 would:

•        Streamline and Improve Workforce Program Services

•        Improve Accountability and Transparency through Performance Measures and Reporting Across Programs

•        Promote Innovation and Promising Practices

•        Expand the Role of Community Colleges in Job Training

•        Develop a 21st Century Delivery System for Adult Education Literacy and Workplace Skills Services

•        Engage Youth through Multiple Pathways to Success

•        Create Competitive Employment Services and Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities

California Conservation Corps Partners with Cuyamaca College for Green Job Training

From Scoop San Diego

Well known as a leader in all things green, from its sustainable landscaping and energy-efficient buildings to its green-career training programs, Cuyamaca College’s latest venture has youthful members of the California Conservation Corps excited about green jobs.

A pilot program put together by the college’s Continuing Education and Workforce Training Division recently linked the CCC’s San Diego center with San Diego Gas & Electric Co., providing 24 corps members 116 hours of introductory experience and training in a variety of job fields in the sustainability sector: green building retrofitting and performance, energy auditing, home-energy rating and solar photovoltaic installation.

Providing the training were local business owners in the solar panel industry, a construction company safety director, and faculty from Cuyamaca College’s Environmental Health and Safety Technology program.

Financially backed by the state chancellor’s office along with SDG&E, the training program proved so successful, with nearly 100 percent completion, that a new CCC class is being scheduled this spring.

College president Mark J. Zacovic said the program is an example of the college’s progressive philosophy of preparing today’s workforce for tomorrow’s jobs.

“We’re ecstatic over the success of this pilot program, and we’re delighted to continue to offer this class with Workforce Innovations Partnership grant funds from the state,” he said.

Molly Hughes, program manager for the college’s Workforce Innovations Partnership, also known as the Green Ventures Project, praised corps members for sticking with the pilot program through completion.

“The corps members worked their regular jobs helping protect our environment, then came to the college all day Fridays and Saturdays on their own time for three months to learn about sustainability,” she said.

Continue Reading at Scoop San Diego

Plenary: Youth Unemployment – Success Stories from Tackling a National Problem

 


Brandon Penny, a 2013 Corpsmember of the Year, starts off the session with an inspiring speech.

Over 6 million young Americans are unemployed or not in school. Years of research and experience have yielded important knowledge about the best ways to tackle this problem, but we still continue to learn and adapt our methods of approaching the causes of unemployment. In the second plenary of The Corps Network 2013 National Conference experts and thought leaders from partnering organizations discussed their own experiences and successes in the areas of education and workforce development. These speakers also shared their thoughts about certain aspects of the battle against youth unemployment that could still use improvement.

Speakers in this session included Jennifer Troke, Chief of the Division of Youth Services, Employment and Training Services with the U.S. Department of Labor; Livia Lam, Senior Labor Policy Advisor with the House Committee on Education and the Workforce; Elizabeth Clay Roy, Deputy Director of Opportunity Nation; and Patrice Cromwell, Director of Economic Development and Integration Initiatives with the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The conversation was moderated by Thaddeus Ferber, Vice President of Policy at the Forum for Youth Investment.

At the opening of the plenary, we heard from Brandon Penny, a 2013 Corpsmember of the Year whose story of success echoed many of the themes that the plenary speakers covered. Brandon shared his story of finding the Civicorps Learning Academy in Oakland, California after he dropped out of high school. Brandon found great success at Civicorps; he gained the respect of his peers and his superiors, earned his high school diploma, and got a job as a truck driver for the Corps’ recycling program.


Left to Right: Elizabeth Clay Roy, Patrice Cromwell, Jennifer Troke, Livia Lam, Thaddeus Ferber

Patrice Cromwell specifically talked about the research of The Annie E. Casey Foundation about “disconnected” or “Opportunity Youth” and the long-term impacts of having so many young people out of school and unemployed (see slides). Elizabeth Clay Roy then spoke about the Opportunity Index created by Opportunity Nation that correlates a number of key variables that can indicate how growing up in a specific zipcode can affect a person’s chances to have success in life. The percent of youth who were disconnected had the strongest correlation with the final Opportunity Score for a zipcode.

The next speakers focused on methods that the federal government is working to help alleviate the problem of youth unemployment. Livia Lam spoke about the opportunities and challenges in passing the Workforce Investment Act, while Jennifer Troke spoke about the youth programs and funding streams administered by the Department of Labor (see slides). Connecting Corps programs to these funding possibilities via Workforce Investment Boards is a project that was mentioned and also covered in a workshop by The Corps Network’s partners at the National Association of Workforce Boards.

The Corps Network Honors the Winners of the 2013 Corps Legacy Achievement Award

The Winners of the 2013 Corps Legacy Acheivement Award.
Left to Right: John Irish, Marilee Eckert, Ira Okun.

On the night of Sunday, February 10th we honored our three winners of the 2013 Corps Legacy Achievement Award. This award recognizes leaders who have contributed to the Corps movement for approximately 20 or more years by serving in a senior leadership position of a corps or multiple corps, or by otherwise making Corps more effective (for instance, we have honored those who founded a corps, brought a corps to scale, made a significant national contribution through developing a national project, etc.). This year’s recipients of the Corps Legacy Achievement Award were John Irish, Marilee Eckert, and Ira Okun.

John Irish was selected for this award for his involvement in the creation and leadership of numerous Arizona-based Corps, and for his dedication to promoting Corps and Corps-friendly legislation. Here he accepts  the award from Miquelle Scheier, Program Manager at Coconino Rural Environment Corps. 

 

 

Marilee Eckert was selected for this award for her outstanding leadership of Conservation Corps North Bay for more than 20 years. Here she accepts the award from David Muraki, Director of the California Conservation Corps.

 

 

Ira Okun was chosen for the award for his many years of service as a consultant to The Corps Network and a number of our member Corps. Here he accepts the award from John Leong, Executive Director of KUPU Hawaii Youth Conservation Corps.

thumbnail

Video: Meet the 2013 Corpsmembers of the Year

 

 

 

 

 

Coverage of our 2013 National Conference

Editor’s Note: we will continue to add to this page as more materials from the Conference become available 

 

Synopses

Materials

Press Releases

Other

Workshop Materials – 2013 National Conference

See below for some of the PowerPoint presentations, handouts, and videos used during our 2013 National Conference.

MONDAY, February 11, 2013

Plenary 

Youth Unemployment – Success Stories from Tackling a National Problem

Concurrent Workshops I

Transportation Funds and Youth Corps 

Films and Research that Explore the Corpsmembers Experience

Concurrent Workshops II 

Fun & Fundraisers: The Good, the Rad, the Ugly

The Value of Data in Creating Performance Management Systems to Improve Youth Outcomes 

TUESDAY, February 12, 2013

Concurrent Workshops III

Maximizing Earned Income: Social Enterprise & Effective Data Systems

Concurrent Workshops V

How to get your Corps Involved in Disaster Relief

An Inspiring Opening Session Also Generates “Emotional Whiplash”

 

The Corps Network 2013 National Conference got off to an exciting start. It began with the introduction of our 2013 Corpsmembers of the Year through a video that told their stories (Watch it here).

Next, Mary Ellen Ardouny, in her first conference as The Corps Network’s President and CEO, gave a “State of the Corps Network Address.” She referenced many of the organization’s accomplishments in 2012, as well as her vision for advancing the work and funding of Corps.

We also heard from Luis Gaeta, a 2013 Corpsmember of the Year from EOC Fresno Local Conservation Corps (LCC). Luis, 20, spoke about how he struggled to make ends meet before finding the Corps, and he discussed how important it was to him to be seen as a leader in LCC’s responsible parenthood program, POPS (Proving Our Parenting Skills).

Next Shelton Johnson, a National Park Ranger based in Yosemite National Park, gave the audience a huge dose of inspiration. During his 26 years of employment with the Park Service, Ranger Johnson has received numerous awards for his work in conservation, his accomplishments within the Park Service, his excellent speaking and interpretation abilities, and his efforts to document the history of the Buffalo Soldiers. Ranger Johnson also worked as a consultant for and was featured in Ken Burns’ Documentary film The National Parks, America’s Best Idea.

During his keynote address, Ranger Johnson used the story of the Buffalo Soldiers – African American cavalrymen who were employed to patrol Yosemite and Sequoia National parks around the turn of the 20th century – as a way to illustrate his point about the importance of having people of all races and backgrounds invested in our lands and resources. Johnson emphasized how our National Parks and public lands belong to all Americans.

Following a brief intermission, our Washington Insider segment gave conference attendees the chance to hear from officials who can offer us a better understanding of how political decisions are made in Washington, D.C., why certain legislation gets passed, and how Corps might be able to have more say in today’s political climate.

This year we were pleased to welcome back The Honorable Martin Frost (D-TX) and The Honorable Tom Davis (R-VA). These two distinguished former Members of Congress discussed how changing tax rates, “sequestration” spending cuts, growing debt, and a slowly recovering economy are impacting how President Obama will work with the Republican-led House of Representatives and the Democratic-led Senate. Representative Frost and Representative Davis talked about how decisions made in the current political and economic climate could impact Corps and countless programs nationwide. It was a candid, yet helpful discussion. It could not be ignored, however, that the impact of the federal “across-the-board cuts” known as “sequestration” were worrisome to our audience, who rely on numerous funding streams to serve youth and complete cost-effective public lands and community service projects.

Perhaps the Colorado Youth Corps Association summed up the emotional turmoil of the Opening Session best with this tweet: 

 

Patrick Barnes of Limitless Vistas Pens Op-Ed about Gulf Coast Restoration and Job Training for Youth

Republished From from The Times-Picayune

With Restore money, Louisiana should strengthen coast and provide job training: Patrick A. Barnes

From oiled marshes and decreased oyster harvests to rising poverty rates and loss of livelihoods, Louisiana has suffered in many ways from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Soon, we will have a chance to repair and restore both our environment and our economy, as the Restore Act sends billions of dollars in Clean Water Act fines to the Gulf Coast states.

In a number of places across the coast, the debate of how to invest this money has pitted the economy against the environment. But instead of debating false choices, why not aim to pursue both? It’s actually a simple proposition: We can create new job and business opportunities by focusing on restoring our coastal and marine ecosystems.

I’m proud to join a diverse group of business leaders from across the Gulf Coast — from the Florida Panhandle to the coast of Texas — who agree that we need to strengthen our region’s traditional industries and create new opportunities by focusing on repairing our coastal environment. More than 120 companies, operating in more than 800 locations and generating more than $20 billion in annual revenues, delivered a letter to the five Gulf Coast governors to say that a healthy ecosystem is a key to driving private sector job growth and future prosperity and fostering economic mobility.

Louisiana, under the leadership of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), deserves significant credit for connecting the dots between a healthy coastline and a stronger economic and cultural future. The Louisiana Coastal Master Plan, the result of much hard work and the support of the Legislature, will invest the funds from the spill to advance this work. That represents a model for other states along the coast.

Restoring our coastal treasures can help tackle many economic goals, including drawing more visitors, promoting thriving fisheries and making our communities more resilient in the face of future storms and sea level rise. Projects like barrier island restoration, marsh creation or oyster reef construction create a demand for a wide variety of private sector companies in the engineering, construction, transportation and manufacturing sectors.

As the president of a regional engineering firm with offices in New Orleans, I’ve seen first-hand what Louisiana’s commitment to coastal restoration means for this growing industry and for workers. One in 12 construction jobs in Louisiana is tied to coastal restoration, according to the Louisiana Workforce Commission. Studies have found ecosystem restoration projects create between 17 and 36 jobs for every million dollars invested. These jobs run the gamut from coastal engineers and geologists to boat captains, welders and equipment operators.

In the state’s master plan, our state’s leadership has acknowledged the opportunity in these restoration jobs and expressed support for helping local workers gain the skills necessary to do them. This is the kind of integrated thinking we need. Many communities face significant economic obstacles; the region has suffered a sharp jump in poverty since the 2010 oil spill, and the decimation of the seafood industry has meant a serious loss of livelihoods. As a founder of the nonprofit Limitless Vistas Inc., I’ve worked for 20 years with disadvantaged and low income youth, giving them the skills necessary to get access to new, good-paying jobs in the environmental field. Many of these jobs do not require a four-year degree and are well suited for short-term applied and on-the-job training opportunities.

Similarly, business leaders across Louisiana and the region who supported this letter believe that our restoration plans could benefit from including efforts to prepare local, low income and disadvantaged workers for these new restoration jobs.

We have a chance to bring industry, communities and training institutions together to identify the necessary skill sets and training programs to prepare our state’s workforce to conduct future restoration projects. Investing even a modest portion of Restore Act funds in this way can help address both the economic and environmental challenges and opportunities we face as a state and a region.

Patrick A. Barnes is a professional geologist, president of BFA Environmental and founder of Limitless Vistas Inc., a New Orleans-based nonprofit preparing at-risk youth for environmental jobs.