Job Corps graduates concerned about elimination in Trump's budget
Job Corps is one of the most notable cuts in the Trump administration's budget – from $1.56 billion in funding to $0. The administration says it's financially unsustainable and a failed experiment.
The program originated in 1964 and offers education and vocational training to Americans between the ages of 16 and 24. About 50,000 people participate every year, getting room and board, and a very small stipend.
Participants can quit at any time, but about 38% of them complete earn a high school education and/or vocational training. Graduates told FOX 9 that Job Corps is the main reason they were able to turn their lives around.
(FOX 9) - One of the notable cuts in President Trump's budget that passed the House last week is to Job Corps.
Youth training
The 61-year-old program offers education and vocational training to Americans between the ages of 16 and 24.
More than a dozen of its graduates talked to FOX 9 Monday, and all of them say they walked away from Job Corps with something valuable — whether it was a job skill they still use or just how to be a responsible adult.
And now they're worried the government is about to pull that life ladder.
Changed lives
Job Corps meant everything for a lot of the three million people who have used it as a stepping stone since 1964.
"I would probably be in jail right now," said Donte Rodolph.
"I was homeless, and I had nowhere to go," said Renee Rodolph. "I was 16, turning 17 years old, and it completely changed my life."
The Rodolphs met at Job Corps and built their own "American Dream" out of the ashes of their former lives.
The program puts a roof over the heads of about 50,000 every year, helping them get a high school diploma or a GED, while teaching trades and even driving skills.
"One of my dreams was to become a truck driver and now I'm living it and I've been driving a truck for 13 years," said Brandon Zacharias. "And if it wasn't for Job Corps I wouldn't have been able to get my driver's license even."
More than a dozen graduates told FOX 9 that Job Corps is where they learned structure, responsibility and even basic life skills.
"I learned that you were supposed to dust baseboards," said Anna Boyd. "I didn't learn that at home. I didn't know that was a thing you were supposed to do. Job Corps taught me that."
'Failed experiment'
But the program currently costs more than $1.5 billion a year.
The Trump administration says it's financially unsustainable and called it a failed experiment.
Its success stories are hoping for a reversal.
"Job Corps means everything," said Andrew MacGregor. "It means the promise of a bright future, the promise of hope and the ability to pursue a brighter path."
What's next
The fate of Job Corps is currently in the hands of the U.S. Senate, where the budget bill is headed after the House passed it last week.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
2 minutes ago
- Fox News
WATCH LIVE: UN Security Council convenes emergency session in NYC over Israeli hostages in Gaza
The United Nations Security Council holds an emergency meeting in New York City to address diplomatic efforts to secure the release of Israeli hostages.
Bloomberg
3 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Ghislaine Maxwell Opposes Release of Epstein Case Documents
Jeffrey Epstein's former girlfriend and associate Ghislaine Maxwell is opposing the US Justice Department's request to unseal grand jury transcripts in her criminal case, saying she is still fighting her conviction. The Trump administration last month asked a pair of federal judges in New York to permit release of transcripts for the proceedings of the grand juries that indicted Epstein and Maxwell given public interest in the case.
Associated Press
3 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Trump narrows Fed chair candidates to four, excluding Treasury Secretary Bessent
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he's whittled down his list of potential Federal Reserve chair candidates to four as he considers a successor to Jerome Powell — a choice that could reset the path of the U.S. economy. Asked on CNBC's 'Squawk Box' for a future replacement to Powell, Trump named Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, and Kevin Warsh, a former member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. 'I think Kevin and Kevin, both Kevins, are very good,' Trump said during an interview on CNBC's 'Squawk Box.' He said two other people were also under consideration, but Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is not among them. 'I love Scott, but he wants to stay where he is,' Trump said. He did not name his other two top candidates but used the opportunity to disparage Powell, whom he has dubbed 'too late' in cutting interest rates. The news that Trump plans to make a decision on the Fed chair 'soon' comes as the Republican president has been highly critical of current Powell, whose term ends in May 2026. Trump recently floated having the Fed's board of governors take full control of the U.S. central bank from Powell, whom he has relentlessly pressured to cut short-term interest rates in ways that raise questions about whether the Fed can remain free from White House politicking. Trump has openly mused about whether to remove Powell before his tenure as chair ends, but he's held off on dismissing the Fed chair after a recent Supreme Court ruling suggested he could only do so for cause rather than out of policy disagreements. The president has put pressure on Powell by claiming he mismanaged the Fed's $2.5 billion renovation project, but he's also said that he's 'highly unlikely' to fire Powell. One of the Fed's governors, Adriana Kugler, made a surprise announcement last Friday that she would be stepping away from her role. That created an opening for Trump, who called her departure 'a pleasant surprise,' to name a new Fed governor. Trump told CNBC it's 'a possibility' that his pick to replace Kugler could also be his choice to replace Powell. Here's what to know about the two known candidates: Kevin Hassett Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, has been supportive of the president's agenda — from his advocacy for income tax cuts and tariffs to his support of the recent firing of BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer. Hassett served in the first Trump administration as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. He has a doctoral degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania and worked at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute before joining the Trump White House in 2017. As part of Hassett's farewell announcement in 2019, Trump called him a 'true friend' who did a 'great job.' Hassett became a fellow at the Hoover Institution, which is located at Stanford University. He later returned to the administration to help deal with the pandemic. On CNBC on Monday, Hassett said 'all over the U.S. government, there have been people who have been resisting Trump everywhere they can.' Kevin Warsh A former Fed governor who stepped down in 2011, Warsh is currently a fellow at the Hoover Institution. He has been supportive of cutting interest rates, a key goal of Trump's. 'The president's right to be frustrated with Jay Powell and the Federal Reserve,' Warsh said on Fox News' 'Sunday Morning Futures' last month. Warsh has been increasingly critical of Powell's Federal Reserve and in July, on CNBC, called for sweeping changes on how the Fed conducts business as well as a new Treasury-Fed accord 'like we did in 1951, after another period where we built up our nation's debt and we were stuck with a central bank that was working at cross purposes with the Treasury.' He said the Fed's 'hesitancy to cut rates, I think, is actually quite a mark against them.' 'The specter of the miss they made on inflation' after the pandemic, he said, 'it has stuck with them. So one of the reasons why the president, I think, is right to be pushing the Fed publicly is we need regime change in the conduct of policy.' 'He's very highly thought of,' Trump said in June when asked directly about Warsh. ___ Associated Press writers Josh Boak and Christopher Rugaber in Washington contributed to this report.
