Rancho Cielo Youth Corps
Our Rancho Cielo Youth Corps is an on-the-job training program serving young people, 18–24, to be prepared for regular full time employment. Our crews learn through their involvement in a variety of construction and destruction projects that teach everything from work ethics to complex construction skills.
This program is critical to the cultural change we are trying to affect, providing youth with positive opportunities to learn new skills and self-sufficiency.
More than 90 at-risk youth have participated in this vocational training program since its inception in 2008. Rancho Cielo Youth Corps gives these youth, many of whom are gang members, the opportunity to learn job skills while being compensated for their work. Referrals for participation come from the court system as an alternative to incarceration, from the Probation Department, from educators, from the Department of Health or from others.
Youth Corps members work between 15 to 30 hours a week and are evaluated weekly by their supervisor, who has worked his way into that position. The first week is non-paid and voluntary. If a member can obtain a satisfactory evaluation, he can enroll for the subsequent four weeks, receiving a stipend of $40 per week. Once completing five weeks of training and maintaining satisfactory weekly evaluations, the member is eligible to enroll for an additional 300 hours of training while earning minimum wage.During this time, the youth participate in resume writing and interview skills workshops through our partnership with the Monterey County Office of Employment Training and Turning Point; in Strengthening Families workshops with California Youth Outreach; in Anger Management sessions, if necessary, with Monterey County Behavioral Health; and many other opportunities, all designed for job readiness.
At the conclusion of this training period, the member is eligible for referrals for regular full-time employment. The Rancho Cielo Youth Corps builds a bridge for at risk youth who might be difficult to employ, giving them the necessary skills to allow them to be satisfactory regular full-time employees. This vocational training is the heart of what we do at Rancho Cielo.
Rancho Cielo Youth Corps was originally funded by the City of Salinas through Measure V. The current economic climate precludes city funding, therefore Rancho Cielo has funded the program through grants, paid jobs for the Youth Corps, and by Calgrip, administered through the Monterey County Workforce Investment Board by the Office for Employment Training.
What are our results?
77.6% Recidivism Reduction within 12 months of program completion
Within 6 months of completing the Youth Corps program, 82.6% of the youth DID NOT re-offend; within 12 months of completing the Youth Corps program, 77.6% of the youth DID NOT re-offend.
An often-quoted study out of the Florida Department of Justice indicates that 43% recidivism reduction is the “norm” for this population; that one in two re-offend within 12 months.
This would indicate that our success at reducing recidivism is ALMOST TWICE the “control” group.
We Need Paid Projects!
In order to sustain this very successful program, we need paid work appropriate for our crews. The crews are trained and closely supervised. Rancho Cielo has workers’ compensation insurance and liability insurance. Previous projects have included demolition, construction, painting, and landscape clearing. We have a fully-equipped woodshop for furniture building or repair. Satisfied clients include: CHISPA, Monterey County Parks and Recreation, Monterey County Probation Department and the City of Salinas.
If you or your business has a project need for any manner of construction or deconstruction, consider hiring the Rancho Cielo Youth Corps.
Be sure to check out the furniture that the Youth Corps builds as part of their supervised vocational training.
For more information please contact us
Email: zahn@ranchocieloyc.org
Phone: (831) 444-3532
For RCYC Application click HERE