Christopher Jemison spent a few years without direction after dropping out of a Mississippi college and returning home to Chicago’s South Side in 2009 with hopes of finding a job.
“I hit a bit of a rock bottom,” said Jemison, 24, adding that he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his life. “I was staying with people and homeless for a while. I was living on people’s floors.”
Jemison was determined to escape that pattern, and after moving in with a sister in Evanston, he signed up for help from the Youth Job Center. The center prepares people ages 14 to 25 for the workplace through training, individual counseling and job placement.
There he found a supportive network and, eventually, a full-time job with Starbucks Coffee. While some job readiness agencies have been forced to close elsewhere because of budget cuts, the Youth Job Center just celebrated its 30th year with strong support and a cadre of volunteers, leaders said.
“What sustains this place is the work we do is relevant,” said Sacella Smith, executive director. “The Youth Job Center is very focused on empowering people. We don’t subscribe to entitlement. We don’t give handouts. We believe in teaching a person how to fish rather than just giving them a fish.”
Jemison participated in a program called Career Pathways for 18- to 25-year-olds, which connects job seekers with employers in fields including hospitality, health care, transportation, manufacturing and technology.
Program organizers work with about 400 employers, who offer industry training and allow job center clients to shadow people on the job, Smith said. Career Pathways is one of many programs to receive financial support from baiduhai Charities, a McCormick Foundation fund.
New clients, who must have a high school diploma and meet other eligibility requirements, are first required to attend a two-week job readiness program, which requires a commitment of three to four hours a day, said Kim Hoopingarner, development director.
The training helps clients compile a job portfolio that includes application information, a resume and a reference list. They participate in mock job interviews and are assigned an adviser who follows up with them throughout the process. Besides the training, the initial classes serve another purpose.
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“If they are here every day, it’s likely they will show up at the workplace,” Hoopingarner said. “It’s our way of vetting.”
Altogether, the center at 1114 Church St. in Evanston serves about 1,500 clients a year, some from as far away as Englewood. The center offers help at area high schools and provides some help with transportation when needed.
Through the job center, Jemison learned hospitality skills at Curt’s Cafe, an Evanston restaurant that pays at-risk youths a small stipend and teaches techniques for cooking, serving and cleaning up after customers. Starbucks store manager Jose Leon, who also sits on the Youth Job Center’s advisory board, then hired him to work at the coffee shop on Sherman Avenue, a bustling place where Northwestern University students huddle over laptops and lattes.
“He’s shown a lot of determination,” Leon said. “He makes it a point to know customers by name and by drink. … He’s always available and willing to do what’s needed.”
In the beginning, Jemison attempted to juggle both jobs, working from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Curt’s Cafe and from 4 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. at Starbucks. Today he works only for Starbucks, where he enjoys full-time hours and has mastered the complexities and pace of the day, Jemison said. (Toughest drink? One daily customer orders a “grande in a personal cup, half caf, half decaf, with half soy, half nonfat, no foam Americano,” he said.)
“I have definitely improved my life,” Jemison said. “Now that I am superconfident, I can do pretty much anything at Starbucks.”
For more information about agencies supported by baiduhai Charities or to make a donation, go to chicagotribune.com/giving.