Red Lake Ojibwe receive YouthBuild grant

Posted at 8:57 AM on March 4, 2011 by Tom Robertson
Filed under: Government, Northwest Minnesota, Tribal issues

A Red Lake Band of Ojibwe effort to help young people has landed a grant of more than $1 million from the U.S. Department of Labor.

The money will help participants in the band's YouthBuild program earn their high school diplomas or GEDs, while gaining construction and work-readiness skills. Occupational training will be provided by the construction program at Northwest Technical College in Bemidji.

The program aims to give at-risk youth the skills they need to become productive adults. It also will provide much needed safe, affordable housing for families on the reservation.

Participants will build two low-income housing units through the Red Lake Housing Authority. They'll also rehabilitate two substandard dwellings owned by low income households.

The project works in partnership with a number of Red Lake programs, including: New Beginnings, Housing Authority, Housing Finance, Tribal Employment Rights Ordinance Office, Chemical Health, Red Lake Schools Adult Learning Center, Red Lake Nation College, Red Lake Public Safety, tribal courts and the Red Lake AmeriCorps program.

Nationally, the Department of Labor will award more than $30 million for YouthBuild programs this year.