Summit Academy OIC: A Community of Workers: Our Strategy

A Community of Workers...

In healthy communities, adults work and children learn. Conversely, unemployed adults are forced to depend either upon public assistance or illegal means to support their families and their children grow up in a community that does not value education or work. Children of unemployed adults are most likely to mature only to perpetuate the poverty of their parents, not understanding their roles as citizens in their community, with little hope for a brighter future.

In his book, When Work Disappears, Dr. William Julius Wilson, a Harvard professor of African American studies, notes that the major difference between today's neighborhoods compared to poor neighborhoods of the past is the absence of working adults, and the discipline and order that work brings. The economic and social benefits of a community of working adults is evident in earned wages that are spent within the community, home ownership, equal distribution of taxes, and most importantly, seeing adults to work everyday sets a positive example and inspires hope in neighborhood children.

Summit Academy OIC is leading the way to building healthy communities by filling some of the most economically challenged neighborhoods in the Twin Cities with skilled workers. It is Summit's fundamental belief that "the best social service program in the world is a living wage job!" Summit offers students a seamless support and training systems to ensure their success on the journey to a life of opportunities and self-sufficiency, SAOIC employs three strategies to accomplish its goals:

Strategy #1 - Prepare Adults for the World of Work

Through Summit Academy OIC, students gain access to high quality training in specialized areas of technology, construction and healthcare. By offering supportive services such as career counseling/planning along with "soft skills" training in the areas of job readiness and leadership development, SAOIC ensures students are well equipped with the technical and professional skills needed to succeed in the workplace.

Strategy #2- Prepare Young People for Their Roles as Responsible Adults

Summit recognizes that investing in children is the key to securing our future. Summit's youth programs prepare youth for their roles as workers, parents and citizens. In partnership with Minneapolis Public Schools, local government agencies, private sector organizations and parents, SAOIC is working to ensure that disadvantaged minority children graduate from high school, have the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education and are prepared for their emerging roles as our future leaders.

Strategy #3 - Connect Workers to Employers

If there is anything worse than being untrained and unemployed, it is being trained and unemployed. Vocational training is useless if it does not result in a job that provides a living wage. SAOIC partners with local employers to establish a mutually beneficial partnerships where job vacancies are filled with qualified workers. In addition, SAOIC works collaboratively with the local government to identify businesses that have the greatest need to hire a well-trained, skilled and disciplined workforce.