By Dianne Anderson

Out of school and out of work is not an obstacle for one recent group of youth getting ready to take their place in space for a future they may have only glimpsed in video games with drones, satellites, spacecraft, propulsion and rockets.

In the coming weeks, nearly 30 youth are exploring the latest in cutting-edge technology careers through the Space Beach Camp Program, a free paid training program helping them traverse the aerospace industry.

“Our young people are the future of Space Beach, and this camp provides participants with an exciting opportunity to explore career pathways in the transformative aerospace industry here in Long Beach,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “We are proud to partner with our aerospace and educational partners to offer this inclusive and dynamic program for young adults in our city.”

Chelsey Magallon said their new program is one of many paid opportunities geared toward underserved communities offered through Future LB, a federally-funded workforce training and extension of the Economic Development Workforce Team.

With a broad mix of the community, Space Beach is especially focused on equity. Of the 34 program participants, 15 youth are Black, with all youth earning while they learn, averaging 25-30 weekly hours at $18 per hour. To get the word out, she said they pushed direct outreach to over 400 individuals and organizations, including young Black males and groups serving the Black community.

She said their all-around support team of partners from the space industry and education sector is committed to investing in the youth.

“We’re hoping we can help make strong connections so these youth can grow mentorships and land positions in the industry if this is what this turns out to be what they’re interested in,” said Magallon, spokesperson for the city’s Economic Development Department.

Among their partners are Long Beach Airport, Port of Long Beach, Ampaire, Benmo, Boeing, California State University, Long Beach, ExLabs, GXO, Inc., Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Long Beach City College, Long Beach Transit, Relativity Space, Rocket Lab, SpaceX, SpinLaunch, United States Space Force, and Vast.

Next up, current college students from 18-30 years majoring in urban planning, architecture, or related fields are also invited to submit applications opening up this week for the Long Beach Urban Design and Civic Engagement Internship opportunity program.

Details of that program will be on their website at www.pacific-gateway.org. Applications will be accepted through September 15.

“A lot of it is related, but this will be very hands-on. It definitely will tap into architectural and related fields,” she said.

Future LB Youth Job Center, which opened last October, has several other programs drawing youth ages 14 to 30 to get busy with paid job training and internships.  Located at 508 W. Willow Street, the center is open weekdays from  11 a.m. to 6 p.m., offering one-on-one help and case management.

So far, she said various community initiatives have helped over 2,000 residents get trained annually in occupational skills toward achieving the goals of the City’s Racial Equity and Reconciliation Initiative.

Space Beach program funding came down two years ago through a $1.6M grant. For the program, they coordinated with California State University, Long Beach; California State University, Dominguez Hills; and Long Beach City College.

She said the Economic Development Department’s Workforce Team is strong on community engagement with outreach partnership pilots of over 200 service providers and more than 40 Long Beach-serving agencies.

“We lean heavily on these collaboratives to promote our opportunities. Additionally, we work with several Black-led organizations with a strong history of serving the Black community,” she said.

Other allies include Success in Challenges, Project Optimist, 100 Black Men, BOSS, Kollab Youth, Long Beach CAP, Earthlodge Center for Transformation, Pools of Hope, and the April Parker Foundation. The program also works with the City’s Department of Health and Human Services, the City-associated Black Employees Association.

Nationally, unemployment and out of school youth remain higher for Black youth. Pulling from the State Unemployment by Race and Ethnicity, the national Black-white unemployment ratio is 2 to 1. In California, Blacks are at 8.2%, Hispanics at 5.8%, and Whites at 4.8%.

In another recent analysis, the Public Policy Institute of California looked at the lingering impact of the pandemic, with half a million Californians aged 16 to 24 were out of work and out of school. Nearly one of five young Black Californians in the same age group were disconnected from school and employment in 2022.

Of those impacted, Blacks and Latinos faced the most at risk of discrimination.

“Disconnection is notable among Black males across all ages, with 20% disconnected (Latino: 13%; multiethnicity: 12%; white: 11%; Asian: 9%). Furthermore, Black and Latino youth are overrepresented in the disconnected demographic at 64% of the total, despite making up 55% of young adults in California,” PPIC reports.

To find job training opportunities, see
https://www.pacific-gateway.org/youthinterns

To see the PPIC analysis,
https://www.ppic.org/blog/without-school-or-work-some-california-youth-are-left-disconnected-from-the-economy/