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Congresswoman Maxine Waters Announces Grant for the “Bridge to Work” Program

April 23, 2010

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-35) today announced that the U.S. Department of Labor has awarded a $95,000 grant to the City of Hawthorne – South Bay Workforce Investment Board (SBWIB) for the "Bridge to Work" program.  This project was funded following an appropriations request submitted by Congresswoman Waters in fiscal year 2009.

"The ‘Bridge to Work' program is an exceptional program created to intervene against, prevent and suppress gang involvement of at-risk youth in South Los Angeles by providing employment and training services, conflict resolution services, life skills training, mentoring and counseling.  I helped develop the program through several related appropriations and will continue to do so in the coming years because mitigating gang involvement is essential to the safety of our community and the future of our youth," Congresswoman Waters said. 

The program serves a 47-square mile area which includes the cities Hawthorne, Gardena and Inglewood – communities within the 35th district.  The region faces many challenges: one in four households are in poverty, only about half of 9th graders graduate high school after 4 years and in 2004, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's office reported the existence of over 50 gangs in the area.  "Bridge to Work" combats these statistics by engaging its participants in critical areas of personal development, education, vocation, and general life skills and conflict resolution, to have the greatest impact. The SBWIB partners with several organizations around the district to lend their resources to "Bridge" such as Centinela Youth Services, United Job Creation Council, and the Hawthorne Police Department.

Jan Vogel, the Executive Director of the SBWIB, said, "We are so thankful to Congresswoman Maxine Waters for her continued support of youth programs.  The current "Bridge to Work" funding will provide wonderful opportunities for at-risk youth to be connected to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Career Academies where students will discover firsthand how their participation can lead to exciting and rewarding careers in growth occupations."

Specifically, the $95,000 grant will provide career development and work readiness training to 125 high risk 12th grade students.  It will be coordinated with the Centinela Valley Union High School District and the local One-Stop organization.

In November 2009, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-35) was honored with the prestigious Esther Williams Award from the South Bay Workforce Investment Consortium, the nonprofit arm of the SBWIB, for her "outstanding commitment and contribution to the South Bay community".

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Issues: 43rd District