[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 2]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 2036]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              INTRODUCTION OF THE YOUTH CORPS ACT OF 2011

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. MAZIE K. HIRONO

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 15, 2011

  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. Speaker, today I introduce the Youth Corps Act of 
2011 to help increase opportunities for youth in Hawaii and nationwide.
  In the worst recession since the Great Depression, 2010 marked the 
highest unemployment rate for youth ages 16-24 since the Labor 
Department began tracking the figure in World War II. Nearly 1 in 5 
youth were unemployed in 2010.
  Youth Corps can help. Modeled after President Franklin D. Roosevelt's 
Civilian Conservation Corps, today's Corps Network includes 143 
programs in 44 states and the District of Columbia. Youth Corps 
programs have helped 600,000 youth gain critical education, civic 
engagement, and job training skills.
  A shining example of a Youth Corps leader is my constituent Mari 
Takemoto-Chock, who is one of six 2011 Corps Member of the Year. Mai 
grew up on Hawaii Island and thrived at excellent public schools. Once 
she attended the University of Hawaii at Manoa, she became aware of the 
daunting opportunity gap between young people of different 
socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds.
  Last spring and summer, Mari served as a UH Fellow in my Washington 
office, where she was one of the most effective employees I have ever 
had. Wanting to do more on-the-ground service, Mari became an 
AmeriCorps VISTA intern for Kupu, the Hawaii Youth Conservation Corps. 
There she helped develop and implement Kupu's new Urban Corps program.
  In 2011, Kupu itself is honored with a Project of the Year award. 
Kupu in Hawaiian means ``to sprout, grow, germinate, or increase'' and 
like the Kupukupu fern that grows after a lava flow, Kupu brings life 
back to the people, the land, and the ocean. Kupu used Recovery Act 
funding to create a Recovery Youth Conservation Corps. The program 
provided education and job training to 45 underserved young adults; 
produced nearly 83,000 service hours, and yielded nearly $1.5 million 
in community improvement projects.
  Unfortunately, Youth Corps programs today must cobble together 
funding from a wide variety of sources, and they operate with 
tremendous uncertainty. The Youth Corps Act of 2011 would provide more 
stability for Youth Corps affiliates and the youth they serve by 
authorizing a new program through the Workforce Investment Act, WIA.
  I thank Congressman Andrews for his continued leadership on this bill 
and urge my colleagues to support this effort.

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