NEW ORLEANS—The City of New Orleans hosted the 14th STRIVE New Orleans (STRIVE NOLA) graduation ceremony Friday, June 9. Launched in March 2015, STRIVE NOLA seeks to connect disadvantaged jobseekers to employment opportunities by providing workforce case management, job readiness training and supportive services.
“STRIVE NOLA is a critical part of our Economic Opportunity Strategy as we are preparing the men and women of New Orleans for work,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “Through this program, we are creating pathways to prosperity and ensuring that every New Orleanian can benefit from the city’s success.”
STRIVE NOLA is in line with Mayor Landrieu’s Economic Opportunity Strategy—a comprehensive effort to connect disadvantaged jobseekers and businesses to new opportunities by working to ensure that every resident can take part in the city’s economic growth through partnerships with local training providers, social service agencies and community advocates, city reps said. This year, the city announced that the African American male non-employment rate is down from 52 percent to 44 percent.
“A top priority for this administration is to connect real people to real opportunity through the Economic Opportunity Strategy,” said Judy Reese Morse, deputy mayor for Citywide Initiatives. “Along with our committed partners, we are creating real opportunities for the people of New Orleans.”
STRIVE NOLA prepares and connects local jobseekers, specifically African American males, to career pathways through local anchor institutions, city reps said. During the four-week job readiness training program, participants arrive to work daily dressed professionally from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
“STRIVE NOLA is a key component in creating pathways to prosperity for the people of New Orleans,” said Ashleigh Gardere, senior advisor for Economic Opportunity and executive director of the Network for Economic Opportunity. “We are proud of the work of the fourteenth cohort of STRIVE NOLA and look forward to continuing our work to create great opportunities for our disadvantaged jobseekers.”
Additionally, this ceremony highlighted the first cohort of STRIVE Future Leaders (SFL) for completing their program. SFL supports young adults between the ages of 18–24 who have been involved in the justice system. The program provides participants with case management services, post-secondary education opportunities, occupational skills training, service learning projects, paid internships, education placement assistance and job readiness training.
The STRIVE employment model ensures that every client is not only ready to find a job, but also ready to keep it through five components: CORE attitudinal and job readiness, skills training, workforce case management, job placement, and job retention and ongoing follow-up, city reps said.
