Careers for a Cause (C4C) is an 8-week training program that supports individuals with lived experience in homelessness or the justice system in building skills and connecting to work in the homeless services and social services field. The program is administered by service providers who serve as subject matter experts. Careers for a cause is held at six community colleges across all five supervisorial districts. Supportive services in the form of weekly stipends, personal laptop and internet hotspot distribution, clothing allowances, and wraparound services like case management, occupational therapy, and job placement assistance are offered to all participants for the duration of the program. Wraparound services for successful program participants will continue for 12 months after program completion.
Over the course of 8-weeks, via community college curriculum, students will learn soft skills that include:
Digital literacy
Writing composition,
Trauma informed care
Mental health first aid
First aid/CPR training
Workplace readiness
During the second iteration of C4C, on-the job trainings (OJT’s) will be available for increased employee development by providing career readiness skills upon successful program completion. The OJT portion of the program will allow students to gain hands-on knowledge of the skills needed to work in the social services sector. The OJT component will also formally acquaint participants with workplace experience which is crucial for the retention of the targeted population of Careers for a Cause. This will help to explore the relationship between the knowledge & skills acquired during instruction with those required in working situations.
On-the-job Training Objectives:
Demonstrate the broad role of social workers in the industry. Targeted roles for OJT’s include: Community Health Worker/Peer Support Specialist, Housing Navigator, and Resident Ambassador and the like
Afford the students an opportunity to establish an interest in the sector
Provide general work experience for each specified role, including the following experience:
Effective/Interpersonal Communication
Customer service techniques
Effective Listening Methods
Motivational interviewing skills
Crisis intervention methods
Effective engagement with community members
Provide a pipeline between DEO Workforce Programs and homeless/social services industry employers so that program participants meet the needs of in-demand jobs while also aiding employers’ needs to fill vacancies.
C4C aims to target high-demand employment vacancies in the homeless and social services sectors. Career track selection will be added to the program curriculum. In-dept engagement of sector employees will also ensue over the 8-week training period to ensure that students have profound understanding of social work. Through the increased engagement of sector employers, WIOA and AJCC on-the-job trainings (OJT’s) will be leveraged to secure employer commitment of hiring program graduates. Employer engagement roundtables will be held to gather valuable input from industry employers.
Targeted high-demand homeless sector employment tracks include:
(1) Community Health Worker
(2) Peer Support Specialist
Although there is a vast need for Case Managers, it is accompanied by a requirement of secondary education which is not always in alignment with the population served by C4C. Conversations with LAHSA are still underway to address requirements for these roles to ensure lived experience is valued in lieu of college degrees or secondary education.