Mr. Philip Taylor, Recruitment and Outreach Specialist for Year Up-Chicago, introduced Year Up at the Chicago Avenue Revitalization Task Force Meeting on Saturday, September 15, 2012. His presentation both enlightened and intrigued the audience. The West Humboldt Park community supports youth mentoring programs that focus on education and the professional development of West Humboldt Park youth. If you are a motivated young adult, between the ages of 18 to 24, and interested in a career in information technology, business communications, and building professional skills, then the Year Up Program is waiting for you!

Year Up is an intensive, one-year program focused on preparing motivated young adults (with a high school diploma or GED) for corporate careers in Information Technology. The first 6 months of the program focus on coursework in the areas of information technology, business communications, and professional skills. After successful completion of the coursework, the students are then placed on a six-month internship with a corporate company. Corporate partners include JP Morgan Chase, Google, Bank of America, etc. Additionally, through the Year Up program, students have the ability to earn up to 18 college credits from Harold Washington College for free, as well as an educational stipend totaling approximately $600 per month while they are taking classes and $900 per month while they are in their internship. Year Up has achieved wonderful outcomes including 100% placement of qualified students in internships, 84% employed or in school full time within 4 months of completing the program, and graduates of the program have an average starting salary of approximately $30,000 annually.

A strong Year Up applicant will:

– Be motivated and have a positive attitude

– Have an interest in technology

– Be able to handle a college level class (community college English 100 or 101)

– Be able to commute downtown every day and commit to the entire year of the program

– Be able to meet high expectations regarding punctuality, attendance, completing assignments

The next class begins in March 2013. The application for the March 2013 Class is now available and completed applications are accepted immediately. As always, students who apply must attend an Open House or view a presentation given by a Year Up staff member before receiving a call for an interview. There are 3 Application Deadlines: October 30^th, November 27^th, and December 18^th. The sooner a student submits an application the better!

There is also a new Workshop Application series where students who need support with their application can visit The Year Up-Chicago office at 223 West Jackson Boulevard, Suite 400, to receive help. The first date for the workshop will be October 25^th.

If you would like to learn more about the Year Up program, please visit the website at http://www.yearup.org and if you have any questions regarding the program, please feel free to contact the Year Up-Chicago office at (312) 726-5300.