Gabe Mendoza, a young Tucson resident, experienced a transformative journey of growth working with the Cradle to Career Partnership anchored at United Way of Tucson. Initially struggling through high school during the pandemic and feeling lost post-graduation, Gabe found direction after joining the Public Allies program and getting connected to Cradle to Career’s Public Ally position. His role would be to focus on Opportunity Youth (16-24 who have become disconnected from school and work through systemic barriers) and connecting them back to job or education pathways…. Watch the video above to hear his full story.

Essential Skills Workshop

These workshops are designed to provide youth with a variety of soft skills to apply to getting and maintaining employment as well as aiding in continuing education. The C2C team held a “Professionalism & Leadership” workshop in May with 29 youth and young adults aged 15-25. Partnering with local branches, Cycle Breakers and Public Allies, we kept our participants engaged getting to the roots of self-evaluation, effective communication, and leading authentically. One participant stated, “I liked the energy in the room and enjoyed the overall opportunity… sometimes we need to step out of our comfort zone for our own growth.”

One of the focuses of Thriving Futures is amplifying the youth voice. We considered the post surveys from the workshop where participants advised they were interested in topics like dressing appropriate for the workplace, building a resume, and how to hold a conversation professionally. This led to the building of our next workshops, “You’re Hired!” You can find more information and register for the next workshop here.

Below are results from pre and post surveys given to participants, and we were astonished with the growth. 

Workforce Readiness Series



The Workforce Readiness Series is a fast-paced, crash course in a specific industry. Working with roughly 35 youth and young adults, they expressed their interest in learning more about the retail industry.

Our partners at Goodwill allowed us to host the 4-day series in November at the Youth Reengagement Center (REC) where we addressed:

·      Employability

·      Professionalism in the workplace

·      Physical and Mental Healthy Habits

·      An onsite visit to a Goodwill store and warehouse where staff gave the youth a tour, informed them of their process of handling materials, and taught the inner workings necessary to keep a store running successfully. 

·      Q and A panel with representatives from Pipeline AZ, Goodwill, Tucson Superintendent’s Office, CycleBreakers, and Target staff. 

Our United Youth Leadership Council (UYLC) has chosen our next Workforce Readiness Series to focus on Community Development. Both our Essential Skills Workshop and Workforce Readiness Series are heavily impacted by UYLC. If you would like to learn more about these programs or Thriving Futures, click here.

Make a gift to the Cradle to Career Partnership and keep the work moving forward.