Hard Work Pays Off: Capturing the Unattainable

Youth economic advancement

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

The Antelope Valley experiences higher poverty and unemployment rates than county, state, and national averages. Young people often bear the brunt of this burden. As education costs soar and vocational trade programs are removed from high schools, low-income youth lack opportunities for advancement, and poverty becomes a seemingly-unbreakable cycle with few pathways to a sustainable career. Smart, eager youth emerging from trauma backgrounds often believe the good life is unattainable to them. Ashley A. grew up in a family of migrant workers and believed her only options for work were the fields or fast food. Upon discovering the chance to develop other professional skills, her father told her that a woman would never succeed in manufacturing. Stories like this of youth lacking inspirational touchpoints are sadly too common. After Ashley graduated LACP, she was hired by Stratolaunch, moved out on her own, and is earning an employer-paid engineering degree to advance in her field.

LACP’s The Work Program is a paid training and skills development program serving high-need youth in the Antelope Valley. Participants learn welding, metal work, composites design, fabrication, engine assembly, electrical systems, bodywork, and precision drilling, all transferable skills to in-demand aerospace industry employment in the AV. We serve clients with a whole person, trauma-informed approach, providing focused case management and supportive services targeting each client's barriers to employment and self-sufficiency. The Work Program curriculum places a strong emphasis on work ethic, accountability, and professionalism, with staff serving as mentors teaching both interpersonal and practical skills. Students learn how to communicate effectively, problem solve, and cope with their lives in a healthy and productive way. Weekly workshops provide training in soft skill development, financial literacy, workplace professionalism, and interview prep. At the end of the 12 weeks, graduates are placed into high-growth aerospace jobs with long-term career paths.
LACP meets our clients where they are, helping them to develop personal and professional goals knowing their desire and will to achieve those goals is paramount to success. With goals as a roadmap, we apply our collective expertise and experience to support youth in overcoming the economic conditions they were born into and achieve long-term financial stability.

LACP’s motto is Hard Work Pays Off: if you stay hungry and stay humble, you truly can achieve economic stability and independence. The expansion of our program will actualize this motto for hundreds of low-income youth in the AV, empowering them to capture what they once thought was unattainable. Currently, LACP trains and employs up to 150 TAY per year through The Work Program with excellent results for graduates, but we do have a waiting list of over 450 youth at various stages of job readiness who are working toward enrollment in the program. Expansion of The Work Program will allow LACP to open up our cohorts to more at-risk young people with funding to employ and train an additional 50 students in the Antelope Valley each year, and to grow our curriculum to achieve more diverse job placements for graduates and meet local industry demand for government contracts through 2050. In the longer term, LACP looks to replicate our success in other high-need areas of LA County.

LACP measures our success by the hard numbers: The Work Program’s most recently completed 10th cohort had a total of 42 students enrolled, with 41 (97.6%) graduating. Of the 41 graduates, 100% are currently employed: 23 have been placed in high-growth jobs with an additional 9 expecting placement within 90 days; the remaining 9 graduates are employed in entry-level positions and are actively interviewing for high-growth placements. Placed graduates are targeted to make $21.22 per hour; at 200 graduates per year, we estimate $8.8M going back into our local economy.
In 2023, LACP enrolled a total of 115 TAY, with 109 (94%) graduating, and 84 of 109 (77%) graduates having offers or working in a high-growth industry. In addition to the Work Program, LACP offers barrier reduction, wraparound services, and employment support to youth in the AV. LACP served over 400 youth not in The Work Program with case management and supportive services, and we aided with an additional 50+ job placements.