This past summer, the CHA’s Resident Services department initiated a partnership with Just-A-Start (JAS) to increase resident participation in Just-A-Start’s Biomedical and Information Technology Careers programs, respectively.
Both programs are full-time, 10-month programs that couple academic training with internships to position up to 18 participants each for entry-level jobs and opportunities for growth in the BioMed and IT fields.
Over a number of years, CHA resident participation has been scant. To entice resident participation, the agency created five $7,000 annual stipends to help defray some of the loss of earnings during program completion.
Also implemented was a robust outreach plan that included a series of informational postcard mailings, and a mixture of online and in-person information sessions conducted by the JAS team.
JAS recently finalized the 2023 cohorts for both programs, which will start after the first of the year. Seven CHA residents were selected through the extensive application, testing, and interview process. The first five accepted will receive CHA stipends, and the remaining two will each receive an equivalent JAS stipend drawn through the organization’s ARPA dollars.
JAS has also placed three additional CHA residents on a waiting list for both programs; they will be called on in the event that any folks from the overall cohort have to drop out early in the program. An opportunity to participate in the 2024 cohort will be available for those that are waitlisted for this year.
All around, this collaboration has proved to be a great start for the CHA and JAS partnership. As JAS works to expand both programs over the next couple of years, the CHA’s Resident Services department will work to develop the pipeline of CHA residents who can take advantage of these important training opportunities in the growing fields offered by the programs.