Kingsley House connects New Orleanians with training and jobs
1st November 2021 · 0 Comments
By Fritz Esker
Contributing Writer
In an economy that’s still recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kingsley House’s Kingsley Connections Career Pathways is connecting New Orleanians with job training, employment, and other services.
Many Louisiana residents are still out of work. Louisiana’s September unemployment rate of 6.2 percent was still above average according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The rate was even higher for Black Louisianians (8.8%).
Arnel Cosey, senior director of strategic initiatives and community services at Kingsley House, said the program first received its funding in 2019. It had only existed for a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. But the program has still been able to train over 100 people in the past year.
For now, the training is focused in the medical field. There is an entry level certification program in patient care, but there is also a program where attendees receive three certifications: medical assistant, phlebotomy, and community health expert. There was a construction program in the early months via a partnership with Delgado Community College, but that was put on hold due to the pandemic. Cosey said they hope to revive that program soon, especially considering construction workers are in need in the Greater New Orleans Area after Hurricane Ida. They also hope to offer an IT training program soon.
Participants do not have to pay for the training. The medical pathway program lets participants work a paid apprenticeship with Ochsner while receiving their training and certifications. Cosey said the latter point is important because many people either cannot afford to take certification classes or they cannot afford to take time off work to attend certification classes.
Cosey said the program also offers other services. She said two of the biggest barriers to employment are previous incarceration and the absence of a high school diploma. The program works to connect parolees with employment and partners with Delgado to help participants get their high school diplomas.
“We are trying to knock down as many barriers to employment as we can,” Cosey said.
The program also has a navigator that helps participants with issues like transportation, child care and other issues. Cosey said the program recently helped a program member secure housing after she had been evicted.
Many participants move on to higher paying jobs, and the program also offers financial literacy classes so the program graduates will be better able to manage their money.
While the pathways program is still young, many members are pleased with the results. Jamika Wynder was unhappy in her job as a parking enforcement officer for the City of New Orleans. She went to Kingsley House for help with child care when she heard about the pathways program. She expressed interest, but missed the first available window to apply. But the Kingsley House staff kept contacting her to say she was welcome to apply at the next window. That impressed Wynder.
“It was their commitment to helping me that struck me,” Wynder said. “They really went the extra mile to help me succeed.”
Wynder is working on the medical assistant/phlebotomist/com-munity health expert track and she loves it so far.
“It’s amazing,” Wynder said.
Whitley Gilbert is on the same certification track as Wynder. She was a project manager at a storage facility. She had been a certified nurse’s aide in South Carolina, but when she moved to Louisiana ten years ago, she found Louisiana nurse’s aide jobs paid so little it wasn’t worth keeping up her certification. She wanted to get back into healthcare, but she could not afford to pay out-of-pocket for certification classes.
“I was looking for a way to get back into the field, but the education is expensive,” Gilbert said.
She heard about the pathways program, applied, and was accepted. She hasn’t had to pay for anything, including books and class materials. She’s also be grateful to work the paid apprenticeship at Ochsner while she earns her certification.
“It takes a load off my back to know I can make ends meet (while completing her education),” Gilbert said.
The program is open to the public. Anyone interested in the program can email kingsleyconnections@kingsleyhouse.org or call (504)523-6221, ext. 256 for more information. Kingsley House will also honor National Career Development Month by hosting interactive panel discussions on Wednesday, November 10. Discussions will cover a wide range of topics. The panels will include job seekers describing what they’re looking for and parolees talking about how to navigate job hunts after being released from prison. Registration is free and can be done at the Kingsley House website.
Kingsley Connections Career Pathways receives funding from the Humana Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation. Cosey said the program also receives funding from private donations. Private donations can be made at www.KingsleyHouse.org.
This article originally published in the November 1, 2021 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
