[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 32 (Monday, March 21, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
              THE SERVICE EDUCATION REDEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

                                 ______


                          HON. BILL RICHARDSON

                             of new mexico

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 21, 1994

  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to share with my colleagues 
a success story about cooperation between a community nonprofit 
organization, private corporations and a Federal grant program that has 
made a difference in the life of a young woman in Santa Fe, NM.
  Brenda Ortega could have easily been another teenage statistic. 
Brenda was pregnant by the time she was a ninth grader and a high 
school dropout by 16. Today at age 18, Brenda has earned a GED, has a 
job with the New Mexico Economic Development Department and is a 
student at Santa Fe Community College. The link between Brenda's 
situation and success was the Service Education Redevelopment [SER] 
Program.
  The Service Education Redevelopment Program is provided by a 
nonprofit organization which helps students obtain a high school 
equivalency degree and find employment. Funded by JPTA grants, State 
matching education funds, and contributions from private businesses and 
foundations, the Service Education Redevelopment Program finds 
students' jobs and pays their wages while they study to obtain a GED. 
While preparing students for the GED test, the SER program also coaches 
students in how to fill out a job application, how to dress 
appropriately, the importance of being on time and communicating with 
an employer.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing what is possible when 
we have cooperation between community, State, and Federal sources and 
the difference we can make in the lives of young people like Brenda 
Ortega.

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