Job Corps to Open 1st Valley Center

The Job Corps, a federally funded job-training program for young people 16 to 24 years old, will open its first recruiting center in the San Fernando Valley on Thursday at the Pacoima Urban Village.

The newest satellite office of the Department of Labor’s Job Corps, which was established in 1964 and now operates more than 100 training centers nationwide, will be staffed two days a week by employees of the Corps’ Southern California headquarters downtown, a Job Corps spokeswoman said.

“We think this is a wonderful opportunity for youth in the San Fernando Valley and especially in the Village and the Northeast Valley,” said Kay Inaba of the Pacoima Urban Village. “The recruiting center will make it easier for Valley youth to both learn about the program as well as to enroll.”

Pacoima Urban Village--whose name was inspired by the African proverb “It takes a village to raise a child”--is an extension of the Vaughn Family Center, a 5-year-old organization acclaimed for its community renewal programs. The Village offers job-hunting and other training programs to promote self-sufficiency in Pacoima.

“This helps us because we are trying to create opportunities for people here. It’s an important resource,” said Jorge Lara, a job counselor at the Village. “It inspires hope and reminds us that we are not a forgotten community.”

Job Corps offers a variety of two-year vocational studies for those accepted into the program. Participants receive room, board and a small salary during their training and can look forward to a job-placement rate around 90% when they graduate.

The public is invited to an open house from 9 to 10 a.m. Thursday at the Pacoima Urban Village, 13330 Vaughn St., to celebrate the opening of the center.