Employment & Training
Her Turn Now to Foster Success
Just a few years ago, Lindsey found herself close to being homeless. With CTI’s assistance, she was able to stabilize her family. Through our One Family Scholars Program, she earned dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in Criminal Justice and Psychology from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. Today, as one of CTI’s Service Integration Specialists, her job is to ensure that people seeking assistance are comprehensively evaluated and that all available services within and outside of the agency are identified. “This will give them the best possible opportunity to address their needs, achieve stability and move toward self-sufficiency,“ says Lindsey. “I’m happy to be in a position now to help others.”
Homeless Family Finds Stability and a Future
Nichole T. received her license as an Aesthetician with the help of her Community Teamwork case manager and our Community Connections to Employment and training (CommCET) program. Nichole has been receiving HomeBASE Rental Assistance since October 2011. Prior to coming to Community Teamwork, Nichole and her daughter were living in a hotel. Since moving into her new apartment, Nichole has worked hard to get her Aesthetics license re-instated, and is now employed, earning a salary plus 25% commission on all of her sales, and looking forward to a brighter future for her family!
Hard Work and Second Chances Turn Lives Around
Victoria V. came to Community Teamworks’s YouthBuild program in June of 2012. She was 17 years old, pregnant, and on probation. Victoria was committed to turning her life around and was in need of a second chance. Her probation officer agreed to relieve her from probation if she achieved her GED. Determined to graduate before her baby was born, Victoria did just that! She achieved her GED and fulfilled the terms of her probation. Victoria is now enrolled at the Lowell Hair Academy and is dedicated to providing a better life for herself and her new family.
Secure Jobs Success Stories Chosen for National Fireman Report (March 2017) #1
Nathaly entered the Secure Job program in January of this year. Upon entry into the program, The Secure job team immediately identified the key supports Nathaly needed to go forward. The SJ staff collaborated with Community Teamwork’s Housing department to support Nathaly into accessing stable housing via the New Horizons EA Program. Within a month of entering Secure Jobs, and the collaborative Secure Jobs and Re-housing action plans, Nathaly accessed TAFDC assistance for the first time and acquired childcare voucher s for her two sons. With Nathaly critical support’s in place, she clearly identified her employment plan and began her medical training as a nurse assistant. Nathaly performed outstanding in both her classroom efforts and in her external externship. Nathaly’s hard work and inherent fit as a nurse assistant resulted in her being the second member in secure job history to be offered a position from Life Care Center in Billerica where her clinical externship took place. Nathaly began her new job only one week after her training ended and she has not looked back since. Nathaly is working full time (40 hours) at Life Care Center in Billerica and is partaking in the Community Teamwork’s Financial Literacy Academy at night.
Additional Successes in March:
Two members from year 4 were hired in positions with starting salaries in the 40, 00/ a year bracket.
The month of March marked significant success for several members of the secure job retention cohort. Community Teamwork’s Secure Job Program has continued our focus on supporting retention participants in accomplishing their goals that fall into their 5-year career and educational plans.
This has been represented in three key areas of success
- Secondary Education
- Promotions/Salary
- Public Advocacy
Secure Jobs Success Stories Chosen for National Fireman Report (March 2017) #2
Jen Cody a year one participant returned to College in September. With the support of her employer, NFI –North American Family Institute, Jen was named to Middlesex Community College’s Merit List for her superlative work in the classroom. Additionally, Jennifer’s public advocacy role has continued, as she was selected to be a panelist for the MASSBAR association’s inaugural conference on the Juvenile and Child Welfare system.
In March, Kate Murray a year two, secure job member retention member who became employed at Comcast in September of 2015, received a promotion and is now earning a salary of 44,000; this is not including her quarterly raises. Due to Kate’s performance and leadership qualities, she was named to both Comcast’s Leadership management team and as a Peer Mentor for new hires. Because of Kate’s potential and exceptional work, Comcast is paying the full tuition for Kate to begin Southern New Hampshire University’s Bachelor’s program in Business Management!
Jasmine’s Story
Jasmine’s Story
Jasmine Delgado, 20, first became homeless at age 9 when she spent five months at a shelter in Connecticut with her mother. In 2013, Jasmine moved in with her father when her mother left for Lowell. When her father told her he needed to find somewhere else to stay because he could no longer pay rent, Jasmine called her mother. Jasmine and her three year-old daughter, Jenadie, moved to Lowell last February to stay with her mother in a single room. This single mother had just returned to Massachusetts from Connecticut, determined to create a better life for herself and her daughter.
Jasmine managed to get her GED on August 3, 2017 and earned the Student of the Year Award upon graduation. She discovered Community Teamwork’s YouthBuild Program and soon became part of a new emerging Culinary Training program. Through this program, Jasmine has helped to grow Community Teamwork’s Farmers’ Market and has become a tremendous resource to the culinary instructor. Jasmine’s leadership and professional skills have grown tremendously. She has become an invaluable part of the culinary program. Jasmine helps to bridge the gap between the instructor and the students in the program. As our culinary intern, she has supported other students through tutoring, encouraging their participation, and as a role model for professional growth. She received her OSHA 10, NCCER, SERVSAFE and allergen training and
is now a part of the ACF (Accredited Culinary Federation) curriculum and will be receiving an accredited certificate for culinary. She is currently working as an intern with Two Chefs Catering and will be starting another internship with Cobblestones Restaurant in the near future. In addition, Jasmine was chosen the 2018 YouthBuild AmeriCorps Spirit of Service Member of the Year.
Though she has overcome many obstacles from a young age, Jasmine was afraid that she could once again find herself in a shelter. “I’m scared because they tell me I can be placed anywhere in Massachusetts,” she said. “That’s the thing that worries me because my daughter has been going to the same school for a year and I want her to stay at the same school and I don’t want to change things. I want her to have that stability.”
With the help of Community Teamwork, Jasmine was able to get her first apartment this past July and was thrilled to celebrate her daughter’s 4th birthday in their very own home! With first-hand knowledge of being homeless and living in a shelter, she took part in panels with other homeless youth during a Youth Homelessness Summit hosted by Community Teamwork this past June. The day-long event was part of CTI’s new concerted effort to tackle this issue.
Jasmine has had her daughter enrolled at the Parker Avenue site since June of 2017. While attending the program, Jasmine has
been able to receive transportation services through the school. Jasmine’s daughter was enrolled at the Parker Avenue site because of their transportation needs and where they were living at the time. When the family moved in to their own apartment in June, Jasmine was able to transfer her daughter to a new center while also keeping her transportation. This was very important to Jasmine as she has no other means of transportation. Now at the Houlares Center, Jasmine’s daughter is transported to and from school. With her daughter being at school every day, Jasmine is able to continue her work in both of her internships.
Jasmine exemplifies the ideals of hard work, perseverance, commitment and follow through. She has learned the personal benefit of these qualities and has adopted them into the very fabric of her life. Jasmine stands out as a leader and role model among her peers but it is her strength and her positive spirit that shine through.
D.B.’s Story
Secure Jobs Success Story
D.B. came to Secure Jobs program as a referral from the Resource Center here at CTI. He relocated to Lowell, MA from Detroit, MI because he felt he needed a drastic change in his life. He expressed feelings of being burned out from his time working for the Corrections Dept. in his home state. D.B. is living at the Lowell Transitional Living Shelter where he was advised to visit CTI for further assistance. D.B. was quickly referred to the SJ program and enrolled on 10/18/18. We began to work on updating his resume and developing a cover letter. We taught him how to modify these documents, using specific job postings, to reflect the desired position. D.B. worked hard on his job search every day until he landed a full time position, with full benefits, at Securitas (a security company). Although the position pays just $14.00/hr. it will earn him enough money to move out of shelter, with the help of our RAFT program, and a place of his own. D.B. will continue to participate in the program until he acquires a position with a company in the field of his choice, Human Services. But for now, he is proud to have found a job and will soon be able to leave shelter and live on his own.
More about Community Teamwork’s Secure Job Program
Gainful employment is critical to a family’s ability to maintain housing stability. The Secure Jobs program helps people achieve the long term objective of self-sufficiency and permanent housing. Since its inception, the program has helped more than 1oo people with the steps needed to secure long-term employment.
The Secure Jobs Initiative was established in 2013 as a pilot program in partnership with the Fireman Foundation with funding through the Housing Stabilization and Preservation Trust Fund. Other partners in launching this program include the Massachusetts Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD) and Eastern Bank. This initiative provides job readiness skills training, eliminates barriers to employment and connects families with suitable employers in jobs with defined career paths. The program provides job training, job search services and a year of stabilization services for participants.
In addition to providing clients with personalized employment services, our Secure Jobs staff works with the client to remove barriers to success by linking participants with childcare resources, transportation to and from training programs, helping navigate options for people who have challenges with CORIs, and providing skills training, job readiness training, and job search services.
For more information or to schedule an appointment please contact the Financial Education (FEC) Office, 978.654.5673. Located at 165 Merrimack Street Lowell MA 01852.
