Feeling lost?
Are you a young adult in Lake County feeling lost in life? Have you recently dropped out of high school? Or, do you lack the skills you need to get ahead? Have you been out of work for over a year? Do you feel like your life may never get better?
If you answered yes to any of the questions above, you’re not alone. In fact, many adolescents and young adults become disconnected from school and work at some point in their lives. These young adults are called opportunity youth.
As a matter of fact, according to a report from Jobs For The Future: Nearly 40 percent of young people ages 16 and 24 are disconnected from work and school or are at risk of becoming disconnected.
So, why do young people disconnect from school or work? It’s not because they aren’t smart enough or they’re lazy. Often, capable young adults who are full of potential drop out of school or don’t work because of societal barriers to success.
Barriers to success.
Some of these barriers to success include: Lack of high school education
- No professional skills
- Homelessness
- No access to mental health treatment
- Low-income
- Abusive relationships and traumatic experiences
- Gang-affiliation / criminal history
- Discrimination based on race, gender identity, or sexuality
After reading this, you might recognize that one or more of these barriers is getting in the way of your ability to succeed. The good news is that there’s still hope.
We’re here to help.
Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) is a workforce readiness YouthBuild program in Waukegan, Illinois that empowers and mentors young adults ages 16-24. YCC provides opportunities for pursuing a high school education, job training, and life skills development.
At YCC, staff will work with young adults to help them finish their high school education, receive professional certifications in construction or information technology (IT), and help them learn valuable life skills and develop their careers. Also, YCC provides individual and group counseling sessions to help address personal issues which hinder an individual’s success. Many of our YouthBuild graduates go on to higher education, earning degrees at the College of Lake County (CLC).
Earn while you learn!
Lastly, YCC’s YouthBuild program is completely free for you to attend. Additionally, YCC will even pay you to get ahead in life. In other words, you will have an opportunity to earn while you learn! All of this may sound too good to be true. But, we promise that it isn’t. However, you don’t have to take our word for it. Click here to see the success stories of young people like you who completed our program. Once you’re ready to take a big step towards building a brighter future, click the button below to apply!
