Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection was praised today in testimony delivered to the U.S. House of Representatives, during a Human Resources Subcommittee Hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee.
At the hearing, dedicated to “Opportunities for Youth and Young Adults to Break the Cycle of Poverty,” a statement from Cheryl Oldham, Vice President of Education Policy for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, noted that “many youth, particularly those who are at-risk, are simply not aware of the many opportunities that exist in the labor market because they have not been exposed to professional careers. There is no better way to tear down this barrier than by engaging youth and bringing them into the workplace.”
Ms. Oldham continued: “Another example of employers working to provide opportunities for at-risk young adults, and in turn benefiting from their skills, is the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection. Originally launched in the 1980s by Wegmans Food Markets to help at- risk youth finish high school, this program has been run for the past 20 years by Hillside Family of Agencies and helps youth throughout New York as well as in Prince George’s County, Maryland and here in Washington D.C. Through this partnership, Hillside provides tutoring, mentoring, college preparation and job-readiness training to prepare young adults for jobs at Wegmans and 20 other employer partners. This program has helped hundreds of youth find and maintain jobs. More than 600 young adults are employed at Wegman stores alone.”
The complete statement is available here.
Founded in 1987, Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection serves nearly 4,500 youth at risk of failing to graduate from high school. The program delivers assistance through an evidence-based model that combines long-term mentoring with job training, part-time work experience and year-round academic support. A public-private partnership, HW-SC is active in the greater Rochester, Syracuse and Buffalo areas; in Rome and Salamanca, NY; and in Prince George’s County, MD, and Washington, DC.