Thank you from Hillary Clinton

If you took the time to send Hillary a birthday card via the Clinton Foundation, you were lucky enough to receive this thank you from her this afternoon.

Mme. Secretary, thank you for all you do, including for being kind enough to thank us!

Thank you for your warm birthday wishes. Your thoughtful card highlights some of the work I'm most proud of at the Clinton Foundation – work that we are able to accomplish because of supporters like you.

I believe that everyone has a role to play in building a future of shared prosperity and opportunity, whether it's empowering women and girls around the world to achieve full participation, giving young people of all ages the learning and employment opportunities they need to live up to their God-given potential, or protecting elephants from poachers and stopping illegal ivory trafficking.

With your support, we are solving urgent problems and helping more people in more places live their best life story. That is the best gift I could hope for, and I appreciate your faith in our shared mission to build a better world.

Best wishes.

Sincerely yours,
Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hillary Clinton's Op-Ed in the Denver Post: Job One for America

Yesterday, Hillary announced a massive initiative at CGI America called Job One.  It incorporates commitments from an array of large corporations, small businesses, and  STEM field organizations to train, hire, and mentor hundreds of thousands of young people.

Today, the Denver Post published an Op-Ed from Hillary on the subject.

Hillary Clinton: Job One for America: putting young people to work

By Hillary Rodham Clinton

Former Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during the Clinton Global Initiative Tuesday at the Sheridan Downtown Denver. (Andy Cross, The Denver Post)

A few weeks ago, I met an impressive young man named Oscar during a visit to the Intertech Plastics manufacturing factory in Denver in the run-up to this week's Clinton Global Initiative's annual CGI America conference.

Oscar grew up in the old South Lincoln Homes, a Denver housing project where unemployment was sky high. Nine out of 10 kids there dropped out of school. His single mom did all she could to make sure that wouldn't happen to him, but the odds were stacked against Oscar from the start.

That's where the Colorado I Have a Dream Foundation came in. The foundation's team and one of its co-founders, Intertech CEO Noel Ginsburg, began mentoring Oscar when he was just 8 years old. Oscar started accompanying Noel to Intertech's factory.

Eventually, he began a formal internship there and then went on to serve our country in the Navy and earn a college degree. He came home to a good job in the same factory. Today, he is the father of three boys and oversees manufacturing operations at a Denver printing company.

Read more >>>>

CGI America 2014: Hillary Clinton Announces 'Job One'

Recalling her visit in early June to Intertech Plastics in Denver, where she was introduced to the company's very effective hiring/training/mentoring program,  Hillary told the CGI America audience today that she hopes a new initiative called  Job One will replicate the techniques successfully implemented at IP.

The youth jobs crises, which she noted can account for a $20 billion loss over a decade if not addressed,  is both corrosive and potentially explosive,  as she witnessed abroad as secretary of state.  Inaugural commitments to Job One rest in three arenas:  10 large corporations have committed to creating hundreds of thousands of jobs (90,000 from The Gap alone) with training as scaffolding, 100 small businesses have committed to train and hire youth, and a third initiative has pledged to attract  recruit, and mentor girls and young women into STEM careers.  This is a massive endeavor.

You can watch the Livestream video of his event here>>>>

The Lifeway Empowerment Program
Commitment By: Lifeway Foods
In 2014, Lifeway committed to recruit three Opportunity Youth for three to six month, full-time internship roles in the company's Chicago office. Lifeway will partner with local Opportunity Youth serving nonprofit organizations to identify and recruit youth for entry-level positions within the company that were specifically created to expand opportunities for this population.
JPMorgan Chase Summer Skills Development and Jobs Initiative
Commitment By: JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Partners: City of Chicago; City Connect Detroit; Leave No Veteran Behind; KentuckianaWorks; ElevArte Community Studio; Greater Milwaukee Foundation; The Greater Saint Louis Community Foundation; United Way of America; PENCIL; Phalanx Family Services; Alternatives, Inc.; Jersey City Economic Development Corporation; Jersey City Economic Development Corporation; Futures and Options
In 2014, JP Morgan Chase & Co. committed to supporting opportunity youth by partnering with foundations, the private sector and the mayors of 14 selected U.S. cities to invest in expanded work readiness and employment opportunities for teenagers and young adults through its JPMorgan Chase Summer Skills Development and Jobs Initiative. The primary goals of the partnership are to create 4,000 summer job opportunities for youth and to provide them with concrete work readiness skills and early work experience. An additional 20,000 youth will benefit from work readiness opportunities. Positions will be available in several sectors including government, education, financial services, health, and energy. The mayor of each city will be the primary local partner, although implementation will be led by various public, private, and nonprofit organizations in selected cities, including local foundations, faith-based and community organizations, universities, and traditional training providers.
Courtyard’s Playbook for Youth Success
Commitment By: Courtyard by Marriott
Partners: National Academy Foundation
In 2014, Courtyard by Marriott brand committed to partner with the National Academy Foundation (NAF) over the next three years to support American youth as they prepare to enter the workforce or seek higher education. Collectively, their commitment will result in at least 10,000 additional career development opportunities for NAF youth or their teachers over the next three years. Through its engagement, Courtyard by Marriott, along with their owners and franchisee business partners, will work together to strengthen employment pathways for young Americans.
Symantec Cyber Career Connection (SC3)
Commitment By: Symantec Corporation
Partners: Year Up; NPower; LifeJourney
In 2014, Symantec Corporation committed to partner with YearUp, NPower, and LifeJourney to recruit a minimum of 45 under-served young adults (ages 18 to 29) in NYC, Baltimore, and San Jose to become educated and certified in cyber security information. Participating youth will receive an educational experience providing both hard and soft skills necessary for employment through the partner organizations. After the educational period ends, participants will apply for and interview for internships with partner organizations in each of three cities where the program will be piloted. Symantec will provide funds to support the physical classrooms, pay for the overhead and the trainers, software and hardware requirements, Symantec product, program, and internship stipends, other training materials, and provide Symantec volunteer employee trainers/mentors to assist the non-profits in achieving these goals. The total initial funding target is up to $2 million per annum.
Elevating the Importance of Manufacturing Careers for Youth
Commitment By: Corning Incorporated
In 2014, Corning committed to pilot a program that will consist of a series of workshops for youth, ages 15 to 21. The first workshop will involve a tour of a manufacturing facility, offering a first-hand view of what working in a factory is like and the workshop will include interaction with employees and management. Two subsequent workshops will focus on work and life skills needed to obtain these jobs, such as having the basic math and English skills central to passing an entrance exam, the importance of attendance and proper dress and presentation in the workplace, and basic financial education on salary, taxes, banking and saving for life events and retirement.
First Jobs for Opportunity Youth
Commitment By: Gap Inc.
Partners: The Door; The Aspen Institute; Forum for Youth Investment; Enterprise for High School Students; Cambridge Housing Authority; SER Jobs for Progress
In 2014, Gap Inc. committed to taking on four areas of activity to equip underserved youth with the skills they need to get on pathways to success: 1) expand This Way Ahead to an additional city; 2) enhance job training, mentoring, and in-kind support to nonprofits that provide youth with workplace skills; 3) recruit 3 to 5 additional companies to join OYN; and 4) raise awareness among customers and the general public around the importance of first jobs, and the role that employers can play to support underserved youth.
Pathways to STEM Jobs via Internships and Job Shadowing
Commitment By: Microsoft Corporation
Partners: Year Up; Junior Achievement
In 2014, Microsoft Corporation committed to deepen its partnerships with Year Up and Junior Achievement via its YouthSpark program by expanding internship, job shadowing, and infrastructure engagement, respectively. Partners will contribute to this commitment by implementing high-quality, locally relevant, and future-thinking career training programs. Year Up empowers low-income young adults to transition from poverty to professional careers in a single year. Junior Achievement works to turn kids of today into the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. Each organization is uniquely positioned to support youth from communities across the U.S. to be successful in their future endeavors.
Bridging the Gap: Connecting Opportunity Youth to Technology
Commitment By: Salesforce Foundation
Partners: Year Up; Genesys Works; Girls Who Code
In 2014, the Salesforce Foundation committed to scaling and expanding its youth mentoring and internship programs by expanding existing partnerships, initiating new partnerships, and educating other businesses on the benefits of youth engagement. The Salesforce Foundation will expand its partnership with Year Up and Genesys Works to provide job training to Opportunity Youth, will scale and expand its mentoring and workforce development program BizAcademy, and launch a new partnership with Girls Who Code to develop opportunities in technology for women and create an 8-week intensive program that teaches the basic principles of computer science and coding to high school aged girls.
Bridging the Opportunity Divide for Youth
Commitment By: MDC Partners Inc.
Partner: Year Up
In 2014, MDC Partners (MDC) committed to work in partnership with Year Up in the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic regions from 2014 to 2015 to provide 25 young people with paid, 6-month internships that will offer practical work experience and prepare them for the workforce. Year Up was chosen as lead partner for this initiative due to the organization's strong track record and proven results in recruiting, training and supporting young people as they transition into the work place. In addition, Year Up's training focus areas align with areas of skill shortage within the MDC network.
Cohort Mentoring for College Access and Persistence
Commitment By: Ernst and Young LLP
Partners: College For Every Student; Yardstick Learning; MENTOR, Inc.
In 2014, Ernst & Young’s (EY) committed to expand College MAP to four cities: Houston, TX; Louisville, KY; New Orleans, LA; and Rochester NY. In each city, EY will deploy a Partner/Principal to serve as the Executive Sponsor, two EY executives (managers/senior managers) to serve as the Program Directors, and a cohort of 15-20 EY professionals to serve as mentors to high school students. EY will also launch the College MAP Collegian Program, a persistence strategy designed to reengage and support alumni of the MAP’s program, who are currently enrolled in college.
LeadersUp: The Future at Work
Commitment By: Small Business Majority Foundation
Partners: The Rockefeller Foundation; Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce; U.S. Department of Labor; Rose Community Foundation; Blue Leopard Capital; Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber; Goodbee & Associates; Youth Policy Institute; Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Fresno Regional Workforce Investment Board
In 2014, LeadersUp committed to bridging the divide between businesses in need of skilled talent and the untapped potential of young people to yield long-term economic and social benefits. The objective is to mobilize businesses to lead up by example and create a place where the future is at work. LeadersUp will: 1) create a LeadersUp platform of engagement; 2) invite businesses to lend their voice; and 3) make the business case through demonstration projects.
Small Business Work Pathways for Opportunity Youth
Commitment By: Small Business Majority Foundation
Partners: The Rockefeller Foundation; Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce; U.S. Department of Labor; Rose Community Foundation; Blue Leopard Capital; Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber; Goodbee & Associates; Youth Policy Institute; Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Fresno Regional Workforce Investment Board
In 2014, Small Business Majority committed to a six month project to study the issue of youth employment and engage small business owners in the effort to increase pathways for the country’s under-employed youth. There are currently 5.8 million “Opportunity Youth” in the United States, young adults, ages 16 to 24, who are not in school or work, may or may not have graduated from high school, and are not college graduates. Small Business Majority will conduct focus groups with small business owners on the issues, use its outreach events and network to find 100 small businesses willing to commit to offering memberships, internships, and innovative hiring and training programs, and will promote awareness of youth employment issues among business owners and the media.
NCWIT AspireIT - Early Computing Experiences for Girls
Commitment by: National Center for Women; Information & Technology
Partners: Intel; Google; Northrop Grumman Foundation; Microsoft; Tata Consultancy Services; Orbotix; University of California at Irvine, Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Science
In 2014, the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) and their partners committed to counter the shortage of women in STEM by scaling the AspireIT outreach program, and providing 10,000 middle school girls with STEM mentorship and training by 2018. Over four years, NCWIT recruit 600 mentors and 250 partner organizations to create 400 outreach initiatives to reach their goal.

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