Regional Summit Addresses Economic Stability with Emerging Opportunities

Jacobs Creek Job Corps project board showcases a sample of their services to women and men ages 16 to 24 to prepare them for success.

(from left) Ed Ellis, Director, HUD Knoxville Field Office Director; Willie Taylor, Regional Director, Department of Labor; Terrance Phillips, Center Director, Jacobs Creek Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center.

Over eighty public housing authorities, alternative education organizations, Section 3 businesses, multifamily owners, housing management companies, homeless service providers, state children services and Community Development Block Grant recipients in the Knoxville area gathered on August 3, 2017 to participate in the U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Labor's (HUD - DOL) Regional Emerging Opportunities Summit.

Conducted at the Jacob's Creek Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center in Bristol, TN, the summit brought together key community stakeholders to identify and discuss innovative ways to address access to housing and economic stability for those they mutually serve.

Job Corps Center Director Terrance Phillips, said "This is a pilot to see how we can tweak our services to make sure this partnership will serve the Department of Labor requirements and HUD. HUD has apartments and housing so when those tenants move in, those apartments need services and that's what job corps trains our students in."

The event kicked off with a welcome from HUD Knoxville Field Office Director, Ed Ellis, and DOL Atlanta Region Director, Willie Taylor, Employment and Training Administration. Sessions included overviews of Job Corps and HUD's Section 3 programs and was highlighted by a panel of six Student Ambassadors sharing their experiences on how Job Corps is helping them reach their career goals and improving their life.

Chris Lopez, who is studying to be a heavy equipment mechanic, said "You have to be willing to have the mindset to be able to achieve what you want to achieve, and you can't let anybody stop you from achieving what you want to achieve. You can't be satisfied with being mediocre." This and similar inspiring testimony from the other students encouraged the 20 young people in attendance from New Vision, a local community youth organization.

Community stakeholders identify and discuss innovative ways to address access to housing and economic stability for those they mutually serve.

The U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Labor provided the impetus for conducting the summit, developed from the need to increase awareness on the part of program beneficiaries' understanding concerning the benefits of Section 3 and how to assist recipients advance themselves or family members toward self-sufficiency. The Department of Labor Job Corps program, through a nationwide network of 126 campuses, offers a comprehensive array of career development services to women and men ages 16 to 24 to prepare them for success. An investment in the nation's largest free education and training program helps young people learn a career, earn a high school diploma or GED, and find and maintain employment.

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