$1.5M job readiness grant will help Brooklyn nonprofit continue to train at-risk youth for jobs
The HOPE Program, a social service nonprofit with a long history in Downtown Brooklyn, has received almost $1.5 million from U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand to help it continue its YouthBuild program — part of a nationwide initiative to prepare at-risk youth for jobs in construction and related industries.
The HOPE Program is one of only four nonprofits in the state to receive the federal funding, the other three being in Kingston, Schenectady and Staten Island. The actual amount headed to HOPE is $1,499,999.
“It’s for our YouthBuild programming, which provides high school equivalency, leadership opportunities, general career readiness, and hard skills training in horticulture and construction,” Irene Branche, HOPE’s chief development and evaluation officer, said in an email. “It’s very exciting!”