JACKSON ANNOUNCES $400,000 GRANT TO BOGALUSA TO GIVE AT-RISK YOUNG PEOPLE CAREERS BUILDING AFFORDABLE HOUSING

FORT WORTH - Young people who drop out of high school face a lifetime of underemployment and can be at higher risk of homelessness. However, thousands of these "at-risk" young people are looking forward to graduation and careers in homebuilding because of $45.5 million in national grants announced today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson. The Sullivan Campus of Louisiana Technical College was the recipient
of a $400,000 grant.

The Youthbuild grants announced today will offer job training and leadership skills to an estimated 3,075 young
people nationally. Youthbuild grants will help these students, ages 16-to-24, to earn their high school diplomas and train them for a future in the construction trades while producing 702 homes for lower income families, many facing homelessness.

Jackson said, "With a modest investment by HUD, we can help these young people graduate high school, start them on a new career path, and create more affordable homes for families who might otherwise be living on our streets."

Louisiana Technical College - Sullivan Campus will train 36 youth between the ages of 16-24 to construct two single family homes in the target area. Some partners in this venture will be the Bogalusa City Schools, the Washington Parish School Board, Antioch Church of Christ USA, the Office of Family Support, the YWCA, Bogalusa Head Start and the Washington Parish Health Unit.

HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development, and enforces the nation's fair housing laws.

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