Feds deliver Flint mentoring program $1 million grant

By Blake Thorne 

 From ©  The Flint Journal  

More than $1 million is headed to a program that helps 18- to 24-year-old unemployed Genesee County residents earn GED's while learning construction.

Metro Flint YouthBuild will collect the $1,092,080 grant through the U.S. Department of Labor, which funds the 18-month-old program, according to a news release from Congressman Dale Kildee, D-MI.

The Flint JournalYouthBuild volunteers paint a bedroom at the Kenneth M. Simmons Square housing complex in Flint last year.

Members of the program learn how to build and fix homes and share their new-found skills on local volunteering projects.

Kildee was a cosponsor of YouthBuild Transfer Act of 2006, which established the program.

"The best economic stimulus package for our young people is a diploma and the skills necessary for a job" Kildee said in the release. "YouthBuild helps young people reengage with their education and prepare for a successful future, all while improving our community by building and rehabilitating affordable housing."