JACKSON ANNOUNCES $2.9 MILLION IN GRANTS TO TEXAS TO GIVE AT-RISK YOUNG PEOPLE CAREERS BUILDING AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Grants to Austin, Brownsville, Dallas, El Paso and San Antonio will help students graduate and build homes for others facing homelessness

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 grants announced today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson.  Five grantees in Texas received a total of $2.9 million (Information on grantees and amounts follows).

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."

Today's announcement marks a transition of the Youthbuild program from HUD to the Department of Labor.  This transfer represents the fulfillment of a 2003 White House Task Force Report on Disadvantaged Youth and resulted in the passage of The Youthbuild Transfer Act, signed by President Bush in September.

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.

Texas grantees:

La Fe Community Development Center in El Paso will receive a Youthbuild grant in the amount of $400,000.
The grant will enable the Center to train 20 youth between the ages of 16-24 and to construct one house.  La Fe Community Development Center is partnering with Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe Inc., El Paso Independent School District, Upper Rio Grande Workforce Development Board, JKS Karma Properties, and University of Texas at El Paso.

San Antonio Youth Centers, Inc., will receive a Youthbuild grant in the amount of $700,000.  The grant will enable San Antonio Youth Centers, Inc. to train 30 youth between the ages of 16-24 and to construct two new houses.  San Antonio Youth Centers also operates as an EZ/EC agency and intends to work closely with other community organizations including local small businesses, the Annie Casey Foundation, and the San Antonio Housing Authority.

Alameda Heights Outreach Foundation in Dallas will receive a Youthbuild grant in the amount of $700,000.
The grant will enable Alameda Heights Outreach Foundation to train 36 youth between the ages of 16-24 and to construct six new houses as well as rehabilitate six existing houses.  The Foundation will work closely with other partners including the City of Dallas Housing Department and the Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity to successfully complete the program.

American Youthworks in Austin will receive a Youthbuild grant in the amount of $700,000.  The grant will enable American Youthworks to train 39 youth between the ages of 16-24 and to construct two houses.  Part of the curriculum will focus on environmentally friendly building techniques.  American Youthworks will work with a number
of partners in the community including Austin Community College, the City of Austin, and Americorps.

Community Development Corporation of Brownsville will receive a Youthbuild grant in the amount of $400,000.  The grant will enable Community Development Corporation of Brownsville to train 20 youth between the ages of
16-24 and to construct five houses.  A regular recipient of HUD Youthbuild funding, the Community Development Corporation of Brownsville will focus its work in the Cameron Park Colonia with multiple partners including the University of Texas at Brownsville and Wells Fargo.

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