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Situation: The story plays out in urban areas nationwide: at-risk young people, ill-equipped for a demanding job market, are left behind with limited prospects for work or careers. In Washington, DC, more than 30 percent of children live in poverty. Forty percent of DC public high school students don’t make it past the tenth grade. Even in boom years, youth unemployment topped 35 percent—more than 50 percent in some neighborhoods.
Client Approach: Washington’s Covenant House, an international nonprofit organization that offers a haven of services and support to at-risk young people, envisioned an intensive youth enterprise program to bridge life on the streets to life in the working world. Enter Reingold: We conducted a feasibility study to select an enterprise responding to emerging market demands; fitting the skills and aptitudes of the youth served; and also likely to build economic vitality. Reingold helped develop grant proposals and business and marketing plans to ensure that the venture would be capitalized, marketed, and launched. We then created an evaluation model to assess progress over time and an annual report showing quantifiable value to funders. Solution: Today, the Covenant House Washington Artisans program equips youth with marketable woodworking skills, knowledge, and experience. Give someone a chance, a future, a new idea of the possible that demolishes the old, and a triumph over almost unimaginable odds can emerge. And a life is changed. |
