Ending Youth Homelessness

Homeless Youth Employment Services

PRO Youth Employment

Employment services are essential for homeless youth who have to support themselves and maintain stable housing.

The Working Zone, a YWCA program, provides employment training services to homeless young people by offering three-month paid internships. It is part of PRO Youth, a partnership of the City of Seattle and six local social service agencies operating throughout King County.

Each year more than 100 homeless youth between the ages of 15 and 22 enroll at one of the three Working Zone job sites in the University District and downtown Seattle. At these sites, youth gain employment skills including professional behavior, work ethics, job search and retention, writing, and customer service.

This Working Zone homeless youth employment program, started in 1994, is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development McKinney Act, and by City of Seattle General Funds. In 2008, approximately $94,500 in local funding leveraged an additional $315,000 in federal funds for the Working Zone.

Barista Training and Employment

The Barista Training and Education Program is run by YouthCare and serves youth and young adults ages 16-24. The program is housed in YouthCare's Orion Center and partners with FareStart to deliver an 8 week Barista training curriculum. Interns receive case management to assist in housing stability, internship completion, educational achievement (either GED or high school credit) and job placement.

YouthCare's Barista Training and Education Program began in 2003 and received City of Seattle funding starting September 2007, providing approximately $63,000 of General Funds in 2008.

Information

For more information about Seattle Human Services Department-funded youth programs, call 206-386-1026 or e-mail youthservices@seattle.gov.

For information about The Working Zone, call the program at 206-633-7901. For information about related programs, call the 211 Community Information Line by dialing 211 or 1-800-621-4636.