Highschool-aged residents of the Jordan Downs and Evermont low- earnings housing communities in South Los Angeleswillearn a paycheck and precious skilledtrades credentialsthroughasummerprogrammadepossiblebyHarborFreightToolsforSchoolsandBRIDGE Housing.
This system, now in its second summer time, offers younger folks pathways to prime quality jobs inside their very own communities, and into industries dealing with rising demand.
This summer time, 40 highschool college students from Jordan Downs and Evermont will full 120 hours of hands-on coaching in development and welding, taking the first step towards a secure, well-paying profession in a talented commerce. College students may also obtain profession readiness assets and help.

The program is a joint effort between Harbor Freight Instruments for Colleges, the flagship program of The Smidt Basis, and BRIDGE Housing, a number one nonprofit affordable housing developer and supervisor on the West Coast. BRIDGE Housing is a part of the $1 billion redevelopment of the Jordan Downs group in Watts, and just lately accomplished 180 affordable housing items at Evermont in South Los Angeles.
“The L.A. County Expert Trades Summers program provides younger folks the chance to discover quite a lot of profession pathways, ones they might not have entry to in any other case, and we proceed to see unimaginable dedication and fervour for studying from the BRIDGE Housing college students,” stated Belen Vargas, senior directorofL.A.CountyProgramsatHarborFreightToolsforSchools.
“We’re thrilled to have the ability to attain much more college students residing at Jordan Downs and Evermont this 12 months and assist present them with the instruments they should succeed earlier than they graduate from highschool.”
This 12 months, college students are studying at an official coaching facility and will earn precious credentials from American Welding Society (AWS) and Nationwide Middle for Development Training and Analysis (NCCER), making ready them for fulfillment in sure expert trades careers.
“After the success of final 12 months’s program, we had so many younger folks in the group asking to be a part of, soweworkedwithHarborFreightToolsforSchoolstomorethandoubleenrollment,triplethehoursof instruction, and addthe trade