12/11/08

Columbus Dispatch Blog

Jennifer Smith Richards

YouthBuild USA has been given $1.6 million from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support seven of its programs, including the charter school it runs in Columbus.

YouthBuild is a program that caters to low-income students ages 16-24. They work toward their GEDs or high school diplomas while learning to build affordable housing for homeless and low-income people. YouthBuild Columbus has been operating since 2001. In the 2006-07 school year, the most recent available, it served 78 students.

The grant is for a three-year period. A news release from YouthBuild says the grant will be used in its seven programs to “strengthen postsecondary partnerships, deepen their graduate supports and academic offerings, and increase significantly the numbers of YouthBuild graduates attaining post-secondary and career credentials.”