SUSLA awarded $1 million U.S. Dept. of Labor YouthBuild grant

Southern University Shreveport (SUSLA) is among 71 programs across 31 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to receive one of the U.S. Department of Labor’s $73.6 million in YouthBuild grants to support academic and occupational skills training for at-risk youth.

One of three Louisiana awardees, SUSLA will receive $1,075,000. Northshore Technical Community College, based in Bogalusa, will receive $948,905, and St. James Parish Government and Department of Human Resources in Convent will receive $900,000.

SUSLA Chancellor Ray Belton said, in a press release from U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La), "SUSLA is very excited to have been awarded the YouthBuild Shreveport grant that will support the enhancement of our community in North Shreveport. We look forward to working with our partners to create positive pathways to self-sufficiency and instill a sense of neighborhood responsibility to the youth of the Martin Luther King, Jr. community."

The grants range from approximately $700,000 to $1.1 million each and will help approximately 4,800 young people obtain the certifications and skills necessary to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Along with the programs receiving funding today, the Labor Department now actively funds 322 YouthBuild programs around the country.

The YouthBuild program aligns with President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative and job-driven training agenda by promoting a "stepping stone” approach that provides a seamless progression from education to work-based training and results in good paying jobs for young adults. The community-based nature of these grants ensures that services are provided where they are needed most and are intended to reach the hardest to serve youth.

Read U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu's release here (www.landrieu.senate.gov).

Read U.S. Department of Labor release here (www.dol.gov).