Silvana Bastante
After years of green workforce research and planning, LISC Boston launched Bridges to Green Jobs in Spring 2022. The first cohort of graduates completed the program in late May and most have already been placed in jobs with partners.
JVS Boston, a LISC Financial Opportunity Center (FOC) partner, recently celebrated the graduation of 52 participants in their career education and training program.
As part of their CDFI Futures series, Next City dove into the impact of LISC’s Financial Opportunity Center (FOC) and Bridges to Career Opportunity (BCO) models. The centers, which are now in 26 states, combine job placement, financial coaching and financial supports to improve individuals’ long-term economic prospects. Katrin Sirje Kärk, LISC’s Director of Workforce Innovations notes the program aims to support clients’ lifelong goals, stating that LISC and the coaches “are committed to being there for as long as needed.”
In recognition of Citi Foundation’s $10 million commitment to LISC’s Bridges to Career Opportunities (Bridges) program, we are sharing the extraordinary journeys of nine people who now have promising careers and brighter financial futures. Bridges helps chronically unemployed and underemployed adults train for, land, and advance in jobs in local growth industries—sectors such as healthcare, construction, and technology—by helping them overcome the roadblocks to success. The majority of Bridges clients are people of color and women, representing the groups facing the highest systemic obstacles to opportunity in our economy.