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“Centro CHA is advancing the community by working to promote economic equity and civic engagement for Latino youth and families in Long Beach,” said Jessica Quintana, the organization’s executive director.

In order to keep up with the growing rate of Latinos in Long Beach and to successfully carry out its mission, Centro CHA activated programs throughout the community that include workforce development, parent services and citizenship/immigration integration.

In one participant’s own words, “Robby and Denny were such helpful case managers. I now have two jobs and I am returning for more training. When you are serious about employment, they match that energy and help you get it done.”

Over the last year, Centro CHA has made significant impacts in the community, including providing legal application services and assisting 974 residents to successfully pass the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Exam to become new U.S. citizens and voters.

Centro CHA also made an impact in the lives of 200 youth through its Face Forward Youth Diversion/Reentry Program. The program targets at-risk youth ages 16-24 and offers free job training in many areas, including CA Food Handler Certification, Personal Caregiver and CPR/First-Aid Training, Forklift Operator Certification, Refinery Safety Overview Certification, Customer Service and Retail Certification and Guard Card License.

Centro CHA continues to serve and improve the Long Beach Latino community through partnerships and collaborations.

One partner, the Long Beach S.A.F.E. Initiative, focuses on reducing violence and encouraging youth development throughout the community. The initiative hosts the “Summer Night Lights” program, which keeps parks open late through the summer and provides a safe place for families and kids to interact.

Centro CHA has also experienced success through the Every Student Matters (ESM) campaign, which led to the Long Beach Unified School District passing a resolution to terminate the use of suspensions and expulsions as disciplinary actions in schools.

Through another Centro CHA collaboration, California State University hosted a summit that strictly focused on the Boys and Men of Color Initiative. The summit encouraged students to graduate high school, provided college and career options, and prepared them to become constructive citizens.

“The leadership, research and outreach of Centro CHA truly fulfill ɫ����’s promise to transform lives and communities through education, employment and empowerment,” said Ignacio Salazar, president and CEO of ɫ����. “We thank them for their important work that results in changed lives.”

After the long-term ramifications in the Houston area brought on by Hurricane Harvey in 2017, SERJobs continued to move forward successfully in 2018 with a new location, new executive director, and expanded geographical reach and services.

SERJobs supports, trains, educates and places roughly 4,000 job seekers each year who come from low-income backgrounds or who have barriers to employment. The goal is to break the cycle of poverty by helping low-income individuals reach long-term financial stability while simultaneously responding to the region’s ever-changing workforce needs.

“SERJobs is unique because we serve individuals that are often facing more challenges than most, including those returning to communities after incarceration and youth or young adults ages 16-24 who are disconnected from school and work,” said , Executive Director and CEO of SERJobs in Houston.

The agency’s services are provided at no cost to the participant, including career coaching, occupational training, job search assistance, and financial coaching. The organization also places an emphasis on Paid Work Experience (PWE) and On the Job Training (OJT) whenever possible, both as a tool for employer engagement, an opportunity for hands-on learning, and as a tool for participant retention. This is particularly critical for participants who are already at a low income level, as dedicating several weeks in a full-time training program without income is a major hardship. Whenever possible, SERJobs offers paid work experience or some sort of stipend to help minimize barriers to success. Further, SERJobs truly engages its employer partners at various levels – from helping design or modify curriculum to interacting with students during classes, to hosting mock interviews and/or hiring events directly.

In order to address the needs of the community today and tomorrow, SER has launched an $11 million Investing in the Future Capital Campaign. Funds will support SER’s proposed 20,000-square-foot Workforce Training Center (WTC), which will provide critical space for hands-on training and economic mobility for neighbors in need of opportunity. The WTC will provide a direct pipeline of specialized trainings, especially to prospective employers of industries involved in Hurricane Harvey and similar recovery efforts, to more than 800 low-to-moderate income individuals annually. SERJobs will continue to be a training hub for a variety of industries: construction, manufacturing, transportation, and infrastructure. They will launch and expand training for disaster recovery areas of the construction trades and develop new training tracks based on labor market demands.

“SERJobs understands that there is a lot of human potential that doesn’t get realized because opportunities are not availed to them,” said Janey Appia, Chairman of the ɫ���� Board of Directors.�� “The unemployment rate may be low, but too many are underemployed. People need to feel power and purpose in their lives to make sustainable changes for themselves and their families. We need to put them in family-sustaining jobs and careers to make a valuable impact. We are thankful for the transforming work that SERJobs takes on each day.”