U.S. General Accounting Office Report. (1986). Job corps: Its costs, employment outcomes, and service to public. (GAO/HRD-86-121 BR, July 30, 1986). (Available from U.S. General Accounting Office, P.O. Box 6015, Gaithersburg, MD 20877.)

OVERVIEW

GAO found that the annual per-person costs are higher at Civilian Conservation Centers than at contract centers. CCCs are part of the Job Corps program but are operated under inter-agency agreement by the Departments of Agriculture and the Interior. However, youth who receive training at CCCs are more likely to be placed (i.e., employed, enter additional training, return to school, or enter the military) than youth who receive training at contract centers. Youth who obtain employment after training at CCCs are paid higher starting wages than youth trained at contract centers. In addition, CCCs are more involved in public service activities, such as construction projects on public lands or in local communities.

IMPLICATIONS

1. Further study is needed to determine why CCCs are more successful in the three ways cited above. One may speculate that it is because personnel at such centers have taken a deeper interest in these youth and that they have found more positive peer support at these centers.
2. The educational upgrading and job training of school dropouts are becoming more critical national needs. Programs such as this must not only be expanded and improved but must also become models for schools and businesses.