ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — At a rally Tuesday, students and staff from Pinellas County Job Corps will get a chance to share their stories and their plea to keep the facility open.
The Department of Labor recently announced a pause in operations at all 99 Job Corps facilities. Last week, a judge issued a temporary injunction blocking the pause of operations at Job Corps locations nationwide, including in Pinellas County. That injunction remains in place for at least for another week.
At a rally, supporters of the facility plan to make their voices heard.
Marcus Gottschlich is the executive director for the Warehouse Arts District Association, and he is allowing the event to be held on their ArtsXchange Stage.
“We’re just providing a space to give a voice to students, give a voice to faculty and let some of the elected officials weigh in on how they see the future of Job Corps developing," he said. “The core mission here is creating a sustainable environment for artists, and I feel like the core mission of Job Borps is to create a sustainable career for students.”
The Warehouse Arts District is located right across the street from the Pinellas County Job Corps Center.
Gottschlich said they’ve been intentional about partnering and helping their neighbors at Job Corps over the years. So, with the threat of the programs ending, he knew they had to do something.
“We’re talking about people. They’re talking about pausing and reassessing. All we see is people and human beings and very young ones that have their whole lives ahead of them,” he said. “You’re taking away a second chance, and I think for a lot of students, it’s their lifeline. They’re coming here to study. They’re coming here to better themselves. And as far as I’m concerned, this country is built on giving people a second chance. And to see that being taken away, we just can’t stand for it.”
He said they are expecting to hear from leaders at the local and federal level along with students and community partners dedicated to making sure they do their part.
St. Pete City councilman Corey Givens Junor is one of those elected officials planning to attend the rally.
“It’s a hidden gem. I always say it’s the best kept secret on the deuces because a lot of people think this is a juvenile detention center. But it’s a home away from home. It’s a job core training facility. One of 99 across the country,” Givens said.
For Givens, the announcement of a pause of operations is personal for him.
“I spent about five years working here at Job Corps. I spent time here as an instructor. Also spent time as a work-based coordinator. It was my job to get these trainees' jobs. To connect them to the workforce,” he said. “I’m hearing from people who spent the past 15 years working here who will no longer have a job after the 30th of this month. I’m hearing from students who came here because they had aged out of foster care and now, they no longer have a place to live.”
In a press release, the Department of Labor cited a report they conducted details how there was $140 million deficit during the last fiscal year and an average graduation rate of under 39%.
As a former employee, Givens takes issue with those numbers.
“It was based off of a period when the center was operating at half capacity. It was during COVID. We didn’t have a lot of students on campus because we weren’t allowed to because of safety hazards and so I don’t feel like it's correct,” Givens said. "Many of our students leave our center early because they’ve either gone into the military or they’ve gone directly into the workforce. So, it's not fair to say our students aren’t performing at capacity or the center isn’t performing at capacity,”
The numbers are one thing, but both Givens and Gottschlich agree that the focus needs to be on the people. It’s what they plan to focus at the rally while challenging leaders at the federal level and leaning on the community to fill in the gaps if it comes to that.
The rally is being held Tuesday at 6 p.m., on the ArtsXchange Stage at the Warehouse Arts District. It’s located at 515 22nd Street South, in St. Pete, across the street from the Pinellas County Job Corps Center.