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!
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!
Anthony’s Story
Before enrolling in YouthBuild of Greater Lowell, Anthony was a student at Greater Lowell High School. While he maintained “average” grades, his attendance was, to say the least, weak. He frequently skipped 2-3 days of school per week, and when he did attend, he was often very late. Though his grades allowed him to progress, passing his freshman and sophomore years, he began to struggle significantly in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, and schools were forced into remote learning. Attending school on Zoom proved challenging, as it did for many young adults during that time. By the beginning of his senior year, Anthony didn’t have enough credits to graduate and was presented with two options. He could either repeat his junior and senior years at Lowell High School, or he could enroll at YouthBuild, where he could take the High School Equivalency Test (HiSET), learn a trade, serve his community, and earn a stipend for his work.
“I didn’t think twice, as I thought it was too good to be true. And now, two years after graduating, I’m confident that I am so much further in life with the support and connection from YouthBuild than I would have been if I had taken the other option.”
Anthony enrolled in YouthBuild in February of 2022, choosing Carpentry and Construction as his trade. He excelled in the education classroom, earning his HiSET before anyone else in his class and scoring well above average. He earned all of his construction certifications, including his OSHA-10 Hour, NCCER Core, and NCCER Site Safety. Anthony also completed 100 hours of community service for Habitat for Humanity and participated in many other community service projects. He was enrolled in Driver’s Education, where he earned his license on the first attempt. While attending YouthBuild, Anthony also worked 20+ hours per week at a part-time job at a local gas station.
After graduating, YouthBuild recommended Anthony for placement in the Youth Works Work Experience Program through MassHire of Lowell. He was placed with the Department of Public Works (DPW) as a garage helper. Due to his exemplary performance in the Work Experience Program, Anthony was offered a full-time position as a Maintenance Worker for the City of Lowell DPW. In April 2024, he was transferred to an MEO III position.
In November 2024, Anthony passed his Class A CDL test, and on Thanksgiving, the staff received this message:
“Hi! I just wanted to tell you that I passed my Class A CDL road test and I got my CDL! I never thought I’d be where I am today, and I truly can’t thank you and everyone at YouthBuild enough for setting me up for success and pushing me to be the best person I can be. Growing up, I knew I wanted to have a good life for myself and my future family, but I was never sure how I would be able to obtain and achieve that. I’m forever grateful that you and everyone at YouthBuild helped me every step of the way to accomplish so many things in my life to reach my goals!
Thank you for changing my life! Have a safe and happy turkey day—I’m forever thankful for you and YouthBuild!”
Anthony’s journey demonstrates the transformative power of YouthBuild in helping young adults overcome challenges and achieve their goals. With the support and guidance from the program, Anthony not only earned his HiSET and built a successful career but also gained the confidence and skills to secure a stable future. His story is a testament to how determination, hard work, and the right opportunities can change the course of one’s life.
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.
