Trump admin ends Job Corps program, impacting young people in Arizona
PHOENIX - The Trump administration is closing Job Corps centers across the country, including one here in the Valley.
Job Corps has been around since 1964, providing free education, job training and housing to low-income young adults.
Local perspective:
The downtown Phoenix location will be shut down by the end of the month.
The Trump administration says it's shutting down the program because it’s hundreds of millions of dollars in debt. But, for many students, this means the only opportunity they have to get off the streets is over.
Carmela Munoz-Cota works in customer service at an office in Tempe, and is proud to rent her own apartment. It's a far cry from where she was before enrolling in the Phoenix Job Corps in 2019.
"I had nothing, because I ran away from my foster home at a young age. I was homeless. I did do drugs. I was on Percocets and fentanyl. Like I said, no support. Job Corps was my only support. They’re the only ones who ever gave me anything in life, and opportunity. That’s all we really want. Just that opportunity," Munoz-Cota said.
That opportunity will be gone by the end of June.
Big picture view:
The Trump administration said the program faces a $213 million deficit and a slew of issues, including a low graduation rate, thousands of reported criminal incidents on campus, and an average cost of $155,000 per graduate.
The U.S. Department of Labor said, in full, "Job Corps was created to help young adults build a pathway to a better life through education, training, and community. However, a startling number of serious incident reports and our in-depth fiscal analysis reveal the program is no longer achieving the intended outcomes that students deserve. We remain committed to ensuring all participants are supported through this transition and connected with the resources they need to succeed as we evaluate the program's possibilities."
‘Job Corps made me believe in myself’
"People tell me I would never make it, I would never walk on stage. I would never succeed in life. Not too many people believe in us. I didn’t even believe in myself. Job Corps made me believe in myself," Munoz-Cota said.
The program is competely free for people ages 16-24, allowing them to live on campus and receive health care while earning a high school diploma and being trained in trades like construction, health care and IT.
Outcry over news of the cuts, not only to this program, but to other educational services is pouring in from across the country and Washington D.C.
"If I could speak to Trump, I would tell him, ‘Give us a chance. We become the next future’s working class,’" Munoz-Cota said.