HHH Job Corps celebrates 120 graduates during ceremony

JOB CORPS ADDRESSES FEDERAL REPORT

According to Job Corps, "There are many false or misleading statements about Job Corps in recent media coverage regarding U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) decision to shutter Job Corps campuses. Below are corrections and additional context."

False statement: Job Corps’ graduation rate is just 38.6%

• The “transparency” report examines data from July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024. Job Corps’ current graduation rate is higher.

• Like other schools and colleges, enrollment and graduates rates were depressed by Covid-19 policies. Historically, Job Corps graduation rates have been above 60%.

• Under previous administrations, DOL began requiring students with a high school diploma to participate in remedial academic classrooms until they are “college-ready” regardless of whether that aligns with their career goals. This leads students to leave out of frustration and has caused a decline in graduation rates.

False statement: Job Corps costs as much as $155,600 per student

• Job Corps costs less than $50,000 per enrollee according to DOL’s report.

• This is an increase from a report during the first Trump administration which indicated the cost per enrollee was $34,301.

• The increase is due almost entirely to Covid-19 restrictions on the number of students Job Corps is allowed to serve, some of which are still in place.

False statement: Job Corps’ cost per graduate is higher than 4-year colleges

• 49% of 4-year college students graduate within 4 years. At an average cost of $38,270, that amounts to a cost per graduate of $312,408.

• 35% of community college students graduate within 3 years. At an average cost of $11,884 per year, that amounts to a cost per graduate of $110,717.

• A report during the first Trump administration, prior to Covid-19 policies, reported Job Corps’ average cost per graduate to be $57,312.

False statement: Job Corps is no longer achieving its intended outcomes

• Job Corps graduates exceeded the wage goals set by DOL in PY 2023.

False statement: Job Corps students are largely hired in minimum-wage positions, earning $16,695

• Job Corps students were placed in jobs earning an average wage of $17.13 during PY 2023, more than twice the minimum wage of $7.25. Graduates earned annualized wages of more than $31,000.

Misleading statement: There are fewer than 25,000 students enrolled

• Job Corps enrollments were greater than 25,000 and increasing in April but have since declined because DOL halted enrollments in March.

Misleading statement: There were 14,913 serious incident reports filed in 2023

• Per DOL’s reporting requirements, these “serious” incidents include power outages and inclement weather, athletic injuries that require treatment, and adult students leaving campus without prior approval.

INJUNCTION GRANTED

After the Monitor went to print, the pause by the DOL was paused following a court granting the Job Corps temporary restraining order, so they are continuing to operate.

Audio

HHH Job Corps celebrates 120 graduates during ceremony_Tesha M. Christensen.mp3

Attachments

20250609-134152-96f-2025 Andrew Fleming JC Commencement Speech.pdf

20250609-134217-e98-ETR Insight June 2025.pdf

20250609-134221-8f8-ETR Insight November 2023.pdf

On Thursday, May 20, 2025, Hubert H. Humphrey Job Corps (1480 Snelling Ave.) celebrated 120 graduates. Of those, 65 returned to participate in the ceremony. Those who couldn’t attend were likely working, according to Job Corp Independent Living Director Kouri Jones. Graduates earn their high school diploma/GED/ and Career Technical Training completion.
Some students transitioned from the center and completed advanced trade at a different site, Jones pointed out.
“We have continued to maintain 140 plus students throughout the past year. Ninety percent of our graduates leave with a job in the specialized field of training/trade.
“We continue to work as a pipeline for union painting contractors, Minneapolis Saint Paul (MSP), TSA and more.
“In the past year, we have approximately 10 students graduate and begin apprenticeships with more to come as a correlation to our partnerships with the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) and Home Builders Institute (HBI).”
Staff and students are uncertain about whether the program will continue after a May 29, 2025 order from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it will begin a “phased pause” in operations at contractor-operated Job Corps centers nationwide by June 30, 2025. The National Job Corps Association (NJCA), several contractors including ETR and the Transportation Communications Union (TCU/IAM), filed a restraining order that was granted against the DOL.
The federal order cited a Job Corps Transparency Report compiled by the DOL’s Employment and Training Administration, which pointed to poor financial performance, low graduation rates and serious incidents (including drug use and criminal charges) of students. HHH Job Corp Executive Director of Center Operations and Support Christopher Kuh of ETR labeled this report as ”misinformation.”
“From my 40 years in the program, I have seen first hand the positive impact Job Corps has had on young adults and their local communities,” stated Kuhn.
“Students in Job Corps often were unsuccessful in a traditional high school. Job Corps provides hands-on training in a safe and supportive environment that is individualized to the needs of the students. Without Job Corps there is a large segment of our population who will not have the opportunity to participate in our economy and instead be a burden to it.
“Job Corps trains young adults for in-demand jobs in the construction, medical, computers, transportation, and other industries. At the Humphrey Center we have pre-apprenticeship training in Building Construction Technology, Painting, and Sign, Billboard, and Display, as well as advanced training through the Transportation Communications Union. Students are training in skills this country needs.
“Staff at the Humphrey Center are dedicated professionals who are working hard under unreasonable circumstances to ensure that students have a safe place to go to should it come to that.”
Kuhn observed, “If Job Corps were to end, it would be a tragedy.”