JACKSON ANNOUNCES $700,000 YOUTHBUILD GRANT TO FREDERICKSBURG GROUP
Part of $45 million in HUD grants awarded to help thousands of at-risk
young people to graduate and expand affordable housing supply

WASHINGTON - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson has announced
the award of a $700,000 HUD Youthbuild grant to Employment Resources Incorporated of Fredericksburg to help
young people at risk of dropping-out of high school and facing a lifetime of underemployment to instead graduate
from school, acquire skills and help communities expand their supply of affordable housing.

The grant was one of 64 Youthbuild grants totaling $45.5 million that HUD has awarded competitively to
organizations in 26 states and the District of Columbia.

The Youthbuild grants will offer job training and leadership skills to an estimated 3,075 young people. 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.

Employment Resources, Inc. will use the Youthbuild grant - its second - to train up to 40 young people between
the ages of 16 and 24.  Each will complete high school while learning construction skills through the rehabilitation
of two houses and the construction of two others. Partnering with Employment Resources are the Bay Area
Workforce Investment Board, the Northern Neck Adult Education Program, Habitat for Humanity of Richmond and Westmoreland County, the Job Assistance Center and Westmoreland County.

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. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
and espanol.hud.gov. For more information about FHA products, please visit www.fha.gov.

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