A Model Club Program
Sharing Alumni Expertise with the Job Corps
December 2002
by Edward H. Cantor '61 Edward H. Cantor '61 is president of the Yale Club of New Haven. The vast knowledge and experience of Yale alumni is undisputed. The Yale Club of New Haven has turned this resource into a treasure-trove for the students at the Connecticut Job Corps by bringing in judges and doctors, radio station presidents and journalists to share their time and expertise. Two years ago, the YCNH teamed with Dwight Hall to place Club members with community service organizations. One group recommended by Dwight Hall was the Connecticut Job Corps. During the first year of this affiliation, five YCNH members participated. By the second year, the number rose to 23. The YCNH also enlisted 11 members of the non-Yale community. The Job Corps, which is located in New Haven, serves 200 men and women between the ages of 16 and 24 who can be described as “youth at risk.” To complete the voluntary program, a student must earn a GED, learn a job skill, hold a job for one year, or enter higher education. Remarkably, the success rate is in excess of 85 percent. Club members have volunteered in a variety of ways. Some have provided one-on-one tutoring to help students prepare for GED exams. Others have arranged for students to visit real working environments, including an architect’s office, a radio station, construction facilities, Yale dining halls, and the local newspaper. Club members have spoken to the students on topics ranging from medical issues concerning teens to careers in home health care. Leslie Wilson '99PhD invited students to his commercial printing company and spoke to them about starting a small business. “Many of these kids have had little opportunity to look beyond careers in custodial work,” says Wilson. “I hoped that by showing them my own business, I could offer them ideas for other possibilities in their future careers.” Dr. Alan Lovins '57, a psychologist, chairs the project for the YCNH. He describes the Job Corps project as the perfect match for the Club. “If an alumnus wants to tutor a student, it can be accomplished on a regular or an as-needed basis. If an alumnus can only come once to talk to the kids, we can adjust to his or her schedule,” says Lovins. “We can bring our life experiences to bear on the kids' education and truly make a difference in their lives.” To reinforce its relationship with the youth-at-risk program, the Club also placed an AYA Community Service Summer Fellow at the Job Corps. Naomi Massave '03 worked on a number of Job Corps projects, including developing mentoring programs and bringing in health services programs. Massave enlisted the Yale Community Health Education group, which counseled Job Corps students on issues of domestic violence, healthy relationships, and sexually transmitted diseases. She also surveyed the students to assist the staff in finding areas that need improvement. “Job Corps challenged me in ways that I never even thought I could be challenged,” says Massave. “Working at Job Corps has made me a more responsible citizen.” Kathleen Wimer, a Job Corps manager, says, “We view the Yale Club as a representative of the University in the community. When Yale Club members devote a little bit of time to the staff and kids at Job Corps, they are sending a message that they care about the kids—and so does Yale. The Job Corps is a federally funded program with centers in every state. The program could easily serve as a model for other Yale Clubs around the country.” |
