By BETTY BASTIDAS
Some 1, 500 people looking for work crowded inside San Francisco City College’s Mission campus on Valencia St. Wednesday morning for a job fair, but those under 21 were overwhelmed by the hundreds over 25 who had recently lost their jobs.
“I look around and see myself as one of the youngest people here. I thought they would be more young people but there are a lot of older people here,” said 19-year-old former college student, D’Angela Grayson.
Grayson, with 25 resumes and cover letters stuffed in a manila envelope, said it was her first job fair after moving back to San Francisco from the San Joaquin Valley. “Its good if I get a good outcome,” she said early in the day.
Kate Ryan, the organizer of the fair said the turnout of older job seekers was not a complete surprise because she focused on dislocated workers, “people who’ve lost their job and need retraining to move into other positions,” she said.
With San Francisco’s unemployment rate at 9 percent, the highest since 1984, according to the city’s Office of the Controller, few expected more than a couple of leads and contacts from the 25 employers who set up tables.
Nancy Perez, a 25-year-old nursing student, said she had been given more flyers than applications. “I’m ready to apply, seems like there is a better chance looking online,” she said.[singlepic id=179 w=320 h=240 float=left]
City College also offers a number of free classes for job training including ones for digital publishing, office support, clerical accounting and computer skills. At the end, students get a certificate of preparedness for entry-level office positions. The classes will start again in the fall.
“I like this one right here, Clerical Accounting Certificate– that I know I could use,” said Felicia Copeland directing her comment to the person at the city college booth. “And it’s a free program. For someone who is serious about my career and what I do, anyone would pick up on this.”
Copeland, a young professional with a business administration degree, was laid off April 15. She said she has been putting endless energy into finding a new job. “I’ve had a job since I was 12 and this is the longest I’ve been without work,” she said.
For youth 16 to 24 the federal stimulus program has just given $2.3 million to the city’s office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) to provide summer employment services to at-risk youth.
This is a one-time stimulus grant for the this summer that targets youth who are out of school or have significant academic deficiencies. According to the city agency, an estimated $1 million will be awarded to agencies for the the Summer Youth Employment Program to serve a minimum of 400 youth.
The city’s office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) sent out the request for proposals last month and closed the application process on May 8. Organizations funded will know by May 28 and be expected to start the process of employing youth immediately. The program period covers from the date of the grant until September 30, 2009.
In the meantime, youth can find out if they are eligible for the stimulus grant by downloading the application available at the Summer Youth Employment website.
By the end of the morning at the Mission Campus, 19-year-old Grayson said she had succeeded in handing out seven or eight of her 25 resumes. “I feel like I actually accomplished something today,” she said.
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