FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 5, 2013

CONTACTS: Brice Freeman (bfreeman@oedworks.com), 410-396-1910; Kate Schmelyun (kschmelyun@oedworks.com) or Ernest Dorsey (edorsey@oedworks.com), 410-396-6722

City Celebrates 13 Years of the Youth Opportunity Baltimore Program YO! Baltimore connects young people to job training, academic services and more Baltimore, Maryland (April 5, 2013) – The Baltimore City Mayor’s Office of Employment Development hosted a “Happy Birthday to YO!” event yesterday to celebrate the Youth Opportunity (YO!) Baltimore program, its partners and members, and its impact on the city. YO! Baltimore was founded in 2000 to address the many needs of youth and young adults disconnected from traditional learning environments. Over the past 13 years, YO! has provided academic, career/job training, advocacy, mentoring, health and social support services to thousands of out-of-school, out-of-work city youth. “I am proud that Baltimore recognizes that supporting our young people is a smart investment, with significant returns for these individuals and their families, our neighborhoods and our city as a whole,” said Baltimore City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young, who spoke at the event. “YO! Baltimore’s youth and young adults are an essential component of our city’s future workforce,” said MOED Director Karen Sitnick. “YO! has provided them with opportunities to positively re-engage with the education system and the labor market, thus improving their skills that lead to employment and careers. We all benefit from this as we continue to strengthen Baltimore’s economy.” Donald Ferko, 21, of the Irvington area of Baltimore City, is one of the thousands of young people who YO! Baltimore has helped steer in a positive direction. After he became a YO! member in 2010, he earned his GED, took advantage of job training and placement opportunities, and studied criminal justice at the Community College of Baltimore County. He now works full-time as a correctional officer for the state of Maryland and plans to advance his career in the corrections field. “YO! played a major part in getting me to where I am,” Ferko said. “My demeanor, the way I carry myself, my manners [are] because of YO!. They encouraged me to get my driver’s license so I could be more independent. They taught me how to dress like a professional and helped me get a job. The lessons I learned [at YO!] will stick with me for the rest of my life.” YO! Baltimore was founded with federal funds. Since those funds expired in 2006, YO! has continued to serve the city’s young citizens due to the vision, commitment and strong support from Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Baltimore City Council President Jack Young and their predecessors, as well as the current and past members of the Baltimore City Council.The national evaluation of the Youth Opportunity Grant Program conducted in 2008 found that the initial grant federal grants increased school retention, labor force participation, employment rates, and hourly wages for teens and decreased crime rates, juvenile delinquency, and gang activity. In its recently released Kids Count Policy Report, the Annie E. Casey Foundation notes that the populations struggling the most to enter the workforce and stay in school today are youth who are less educated, come from low-income families and belong to a racial or ethnic minority. Baltimore is cited as one of the cities pulling together resources across systems and sectors to get youth in high-poverty communities re-engaged and onto pathways to success, despite limited federal funds focused specifically on disconnected youth. YO! Baltimore is a primary example of that approach. Since 2000, the YO! program has served nearly 7,000 Baltimore residents between the ages of 16-22, linking them with more than 150 community-based educational, workforce preparation and personal development services. Not surprisingly, the following demographics of the members at the time of registration indicated several barriers that needed to be addressed in order to bring them to a point to effectively further their education and employability goals: • 76 percent of participants had dropped out of school • 94 percent were unemployed • the average math level was fifth grade • the average reading level was seventh grade • 31 percent had been involved in the criminal justice system (adult or juvenile conviction, or case pending) • 26 percent were parents • 8 percent were in foster care • 6 percent were homeless or in transitional housing YO! Baltimore operates two safe, youth-friendly centers, one in West Baltimore and one in East Baltimore, and uses a youth development model that builds upon the existing strengths of each participant, connects them with caring adults, and offers a full range of beneficial services. Highlights over the past 13 years include: • 67 percent of participants who were unemployed at the time of registration found a job after registering with YO! • 344 YO! participants have enrolled in college • In recent years, the program has consistently achieved its goal of having more than 90 percent of enrolled participants avoid criminal activity Key YO! partners include the Baltimore City Department of Juvenile Services, Baltimore City Public Schools, Civic Works, the Historic East Baltimore Community Action Coalition (HEBCAC), the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health/Center for Adolescent Health, and Sinai Hospital. Because of its record of success, YO! Baltimore was recognized during the event as a national model for youth engagement by the national Communities Collaborating to Reconnect Youth (CCRY) Network. Linda Harris, director of youth policy at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), who helped establish the Network, presented the plaque acknowledging Baltimore’s years of innovating and sustaining youth development and influencing the expansion of effective practice in communities around the country. In addition to celebrating YO!’s past 13 years, the event also looked to the future with the unveiling of the new YO! Academy Culinary Arts program, which prepares students for stable careers in the foodservice, hospitality and tourism industries. ### In fiscal year 2012, the Mayor's Office of Employment Development hosted more than 145,000 visits from city residents at our one-stop career centers, provided computer literacy to more than 2,500 people at our Digital Learning Labs, and placed nearly 2,500 individuals in jobs. We connected more than 5,300 young people to summer employment and assisted more than 450 businesses through our Employ Baltimore strategy. MOED is committed to building a strong workforce for our city by developing meaningful partnerships with the local business community and connecting Baltimore citizens of all ages and backgrounds with jobs and pathways to careers. www.oedworks.com.