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Nonprofit Overview
Causes: Employment, Job Training
Mission: Organizational Mission and History: Established in 1998, urban university (uu) is a non-profit 501 c (3) organization that was founded to address service gaps affecting low-income individuals transitioning from poverty. Our mission is to improve the socio-economic status of impoverished adults by providing employability training, individualized coaching and employment opportunities. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, uu seeks to inspire and empower residents of under-resourced communities by delivering culturally competent workforce development programs and services that focus on self-esteem, professional development and barrier remediation as they embark on the journey to self-sufficiency. Born in San Francisco two years after the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, uu offers a full spectrum of workforce development training and case management services to the San Francisco bay area’s most vulnerable residents. In FY2011-2012, we served 250 individuals, 65% African American, 20% Latino, 10% Asian, 40%female and 60% male. All of these individuals lived below the San Francisco and Oakland Self-Sufficiency Standards and 50% lived below the federal poverty level. Our participants faced various socio-economic barriers to include lack of work experience, sub-standard literacy rates, homelessness, criminal convictions, language barrier and suspended driver's licenses. We promote the long-term economic well-being of our participants by delivering that directly addresses the employability while preparing them for the realities of the 21st century workplace.
Programs: Current Programs: uu brings fourteen years of experience designing and delivering impactful workforce development programs along with a deep understanding of the struggles low-income individuals face as they prepare for personal and professional success to running our current programs: • Single Parents at Work – Comprehensive transitional employment program through our social enterprises - urban furniture and urban boutique, which provides employment and professional development to formerly incarcerated Oakland single mothers and fathers transitioning from public assistance into employment. In 2011, three single parents were hired through AC Hire and transferred to unsubsidized employment after four to eight months, earning an average wage of $10 per hour. • LIFT: Learning with Income, Foundations to Teach – Sponsored by the San Francisco Human Services Agency (HSA) in partnership with the City College of San Francisco. uu provided recruitment, job readiness training, coaching and placement services to 41 individuals transitioning from CalWORKS into teacher’s assistant positions throughout San Francisco early education and after-school employers. Thirty-eight parents were hired as Assistant Teachers at 16 San Francisco Early Childhood Education (ECE) and After-School Programs, earning an average wage between $10 - $15 per hour. Participants graduate LIFT with 1) an Associate Teacher’s Permit, 2) a year of employment and 3) the drive to pursue a teaching career. • Oakland Green Jobs Initiative Re-Entry Initiative - In partnership with the City of Oakland, Laney College, Cypress Mandela, Growth Sector, CiviCorps, Men of Valor and the Private Industry Council. In 2011, uu provided case management coordination, individual employability coaching and safety net services to 20 re-entry youth (ex-offenders), age 18–24, to prepare them to complete their high school diplomas, enter into recycling positions with CiviCorps and transition into post-secondary or vocational training programs. • WorkSmart – For more than 12 years, uu has delivered customized local and regional sector based workforce development services in collaboration with employers, community colleges and workforce investment boards. uu provides assessment, selection, professional development and individualized employability coaching services to local and regional sector-based workforce development initiatives. Collaborations include: Recology Inc. professional development training for Material Handlers, EBMUD Waterways Plumber Training Program, Veteran’s Education and Assistance Program (VEAP), PG&E PowerPathway Bridge to Utility Worker Program, and the Legal Employment Action Program (LEAP), etc.