Miami, June 13, 2016 Miami Dade College’s (MDC) North Campus will announce its partnership with AARP Foundation’s BACK TO WORK 50+ initiative, which is dedicated to moving low-income, unemployed adults age 50+ to stability by increasing their income through employment in good jobs in their communities. The program will open with a free information workshop on “7 Smart Strategies for 50+ Jobseekers” on Tuesday, June 21 and Wednesday, June 22.
MDC’s North Campus and Meek Entrepreneurial Education Center (MEEC) will become one of more than 24 colleges, workforce investment boards, and nonprofits to provide older adults with training, support and access to employers. Over 20,000 people have received job search strategies and tools from BACK TO WORK 50+ since the program’s inception in 2013.
“We are excited to be a part of the AARP Foundation 50+ network,” said Dr. Malou C. Harrison, North Campus’ president. “Research shows that women over 50 were most deeply impacted by the recession and even as the economy has recovered, job opportunities have been slow in coming for this population. The Back to Work 50+ program, our high quality and innovative job training programs and our relationships with our county’s leading employers, we believe we can help make a difference and provide an important pathway to employment for a population with a lot to offer in today’s job market.”
MDC is a proud subgrantee of the Social Innovation Fund (SIF) program under a grant provided from the Corporation for National and Community Service to AARP Foundation. Through the BACK TO WORK 50+ Women’s Economic Stability Initiative, MDC will focus on helping women age 50 and older find local jobs, and build the financial capability to make sound decisions that reduce debt, rebuild savings, and pave the way to greater financial stability.
“SIF’s data reinforces that when women have access to education and thus jobs, the entire family benefits. Delivering training through community colleges is also one of the most effective ways for women 50+ to gain the necessary skills they need to be competitive in the workforce,” said Damian Thorman, Director of the Social Innovation Fund.
AARP Foundation’s BACK TO WORK 50+ initiative with its community colleges is made possible through collaboration with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC).
To register for an upcoming Strategies Workshop, contact AARP Foundation at 1(800) 850-2525. To learn more about the BACK TO WORK 50+ initiative, please visit: www.aarp.org/backtowork50plus.
For more information, please contact Georgette Perez at 305-237-1565 or gperez2@mdc.edu.
About AARP Foundation
AARP Foundation is working to win back opportunity for struggling Americans 50+ by being a force for change on the most serious issues they face today: housing, hunger, income and isolation. By coordinating responses to these issues on all four fronts at once, and supporting them with vigorous legal advocacy, the Foundation serves the unique needs of those 50+ while working with local organizations nationwide to reach more people, strengthen communities, work more efficiently and make resources go further. AARP Foundation is AARP’s affiliated charity. Learn more at www.aarpfoundation.org.
About the Social Innovation Fund
The Social Innovation Fund is a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through its AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund, and Volunteer Generation Fund programs, and leads the President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.
About the American Association of Community Colleges
As the voice of the nation’s community colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) delivers educational and economic opportunity for 13 million diverse students in search of the American Dream. Uniquely dedicated to access and success for all students, AACC’s member colleges provide an on-ramp to degree attainment, skilled careers and family-supporting wages. Located in Washington, D.C., AACC advocates for these not-for-profit, public-serving institutions to ensure they have the resources and support they need to deliver on the mission of increasing economic mobility for all.
This and other MDC releases are available on the web at www.mdc.edu.
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