Article Contributed By: Brady Funn, III, Director of Educational Opportunity and Workforce Development, Forestdale Inc.
If a student in seventh grade knew that showing up to school on time increases their chances of being successfully employed, would it change their view of school? What if they knew that every homework assignment and report they submit on time increases their chances of obtaining employment? If they knew that being prepared is one of the first steps to securing a job after school, would they spend more time making sure they were prepared?
At Forestdale’s new Workforce Development Initiative, we make every effort to help our youth and their parents develop successful habits in school that will lead to successful habits on the job. We believe every child has the ability to become successfully employed. We work with families to ensure that our children have the best chances to gain successful employment.
By their 21st birthday, New York City youth in care relinquish state-sponsored rights to food, clothing, and shelter. They head out into the world on their own and we hope that they are prepared. However, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that nationally in 2007, only 46 percent of former foster kids had graduated high school and less than 20 percent were self-supporting (Child Welfare Watch, 2010/2011).
Successful education is an investment in our children’s future. The last few years of my banking career, I worked as a Senior Staffing Specialist. I’ve conducted hundreds of interviews and unfortunately several exit interviews of employees who were terminated. Of the terminated employees, 98% were fired for lateness and sub-par work habits, traits that they developed in school.
We must instill in our children and their parents that the successful employment for their child begins in middle school, not after college. They must understand that habits that lead to failure on the job begin to develop while their children are in school.
In New York City there are an estimated 20,000-40,000 homeless youth of which 30 percent come from the foster care system (Chelsea Foyer, 2008). New York City estimates that 160,000 youth, ages 16 to 21, are neither in school nor employed legally. However, according to the Community Service Society, only 12,000 program spots aim to get them back to school or work (Child Welfare Watch, 2010/2011).
Forestdale has found that youth in care are being discharged without the educational and career planning supports they need to transition to successful, independent living. Magnifying the problem of unemployment for foster youth:
- Fewer jobs are available due to the recession; skilled adults with more consistent work records are competing for the same jobs. Many foster youth resort to jobs in food or retail which do not afford them schedules conducive to stay in school, nor put them on career-oriented tracks (Hilliard, 2011)
- People without high school diplomas lost jobs at nearly double the rate of high school graduates between 2007-2009 (Community Service Society, 2009)
One of our goals is to not just prepare our clients for employment, but help them understand the employment process and that employment begins with education.
If you are interested to learn more about our Workforce Development Initiative, please contact our Development Department at 718-263-0740 or development@forestdaleinc.org.
Brady Funn, III
Brady H. Funn III is the Director of Educational Opportunity and Workforce Development at Forestdale. Mr. Funn has 30 years experience in the banking industry in branch operations, consumer credit and customer service. In his last four years in banking, he worked as a Senior Staffing Specialist for ABN-AMRO North America and staffed all branches of EAB, a subsidiary of ABN-AMRO throughout New York City and Long Island. While working with ABN-AMRO, Mr. Funn also conducted employment and interview workshops throughout New York City and Long Island.
He has a Masters of Divinity from Drew University and a Bachelors Degree in Organizational Management at Nyack College. Brady is also an ordained Reverend at the Greater Allen AME Cathedral of New York. He and his wife, Georgia Funn, own 248 Sherman Avenue Corporation, a real estate investment company.
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