On November 1st, members of Mile High Youth Corps’ YouthBuild Program will celebrate the completion of a nine month career readiness and education focused program at an event at the Highland Event Center with friends, family and Mile High Youth Corps staff.

Mile High Youth Corps (MHYC) brings young people from diverse life experiences together to learn, work hard, and grow in service to community, the environment, and their own development. State Representative, James Coleman, of House District 7 will be delivering the keynote at the ceremony.

Amber Palmeri, Senior Program Manager: YouthBuild, comments on the special occasion, “We are incredibly proud of this group of young people for their dedication to improving their lives and preparing themselves for meaningful careers that will continue to serve them far into the future. “

Mile High Youth Corps’ YouthBuild Program is based on a 41-year national model and serves 100 percent opportunity youth, defined as young adults, ages 17-24, disconnected from school and/or work. YouthBuild addresses the rising poverty levels, high school dropout rates and chronic unemployment that disproportionately impact youth from urban core neighborhoods that are under resourced. YouthBuild provides valuable on-the-job training while meeting the state’s increasing demands for a highly-trained workforce in the construction and healthcare industries.

Youth, ages 17-24, called Corpsmembers, choose between two career pathways in construction or health & wellness. The construction pathway gives Corpsmembers time on a large-scale construction site where they learn technical job skills and build low-income housing units. The Health & Wellness pathway partners with the Community College of Denver to allow Corpsmembers the opportunity to receive their Certificate in Nurse Aide training. The remaining time was spent in the classroom where Corpsmembers work toward achieving their high school equivalency diploma.

“In just 6 short months I have earned my GED. Knowing I have accomplished this lets me focus on future career goals and pursue my vision. I’ve learned how to be a voice for myself and others in the program. It gave me a deeper understanding of what it takes to be aleader and to help those around me.”–Yessi, 2019 YouthBuild Corpsmember