One Stop Job Center Calendar — August 2010

Crittenton Jobs
For nearly four decades, the families of Bayview-Hunters Point have languished on an island of poverty while the rest of San Francisco has risen on a tide of prosperity. The area suffers an unemployment rate of approaching 20 percent. Further, nearly 40 percent of area residents have a median household income of $15,000, less than one quarter of the city median. Recent job trends have exacerbated income inequality in San Francisco, which has a pronounced racial dimension.

The goal of Crittenton Jobs is to provide job readiness training to ameliorate employment rates and a widespread lack of educational resources in an effort to diminish cycles of generational poverty. This goal is directly tied to the agency mission of empowering families to become self-sufficient and strengthening children's foundations for learning. Overcoming multiple barriers to employment is the fundamental goal of Crittenton Jobs. These barriers include insufficient education, limited English proficiency, medical problems, substance abuse, mental health problems, and disability. The program also refers program participants and their families to other human services providers.

Unlike other programs, Crittenton Jobs exclusively serves clients who are typically low-income women of color, single parents, and high school graduates with spotty work histories. When they begin the program, most have median annual incomes between $12,766.00 and $16, 849.00. However, with a modest program investment of $3,300 per client, many program graduates find permanent employment and see their incomes immediately double to more than $24,960, with some rising to more than $37,440.

Job-training and job placement efforts are extremely effective ways to eradicate poverty, support healthy families, and create strong communities. Crittenton Jobs has a proven record of success in doing just that. In 12 years, Crittenton Jobs has served nearly 620 people, referring or placing more than 250 into paid internships and gainful employment. FCS has also hired and currently employs five program graduates.

In July 2009, FCS was awarded $200,000 from San Francisco's Office of Workforce and Economic Development to administer the Neighborhood Satellite One Stop Career Link. Located at 73 Leland Avenue, FCS provides oversight, a Workforce Investment Act and federal grant consultant, and a full time data manager to coordinate service delivery outcomes. Meanwhile, the agency receives technical assistance from Goodwill Industries and support services from the Visitacion Valley Economic Workforce Development Collaborative.

For more information about Crittenton Jobs, contact Director Susan Murphy at 415-239-8705.