NYC Department of Youth and Community Development Awards $4.95 Million to Support LaGuardia’s Train and Earn Program

LONG ISLAND CITY, NY— (February 19, 2025) – LaGuardia Community College/CUNY is at the forefront of preparing young New Yorkers to work in the healthcare sector. LaGuardia’s Workforce Education Center (WEC) in the Adult and Continuing Education Division received a new, six-year grant totaling $4.95 million from the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) to help LaGuardia establish a Train and Earn Program to provide comprehensive training for out of school and out of work (OSOW) high schoolers in the healthcare sector.

“Connecting young people to paid jobs and careers has been a top priority of Mayor Adams. The Mayor’s goal is to make New York the best city to raise a family, and having access to employment opportunities to support a family is the blueprint for success for all New Yorkers,” said NYC Department of Youth and Community Development Commissioner Keith Howard. “DYCD is grateful for our outstanding partnership with CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and LaGuardia Community College.”

“We are grateful for the support from DYCD to help LaGuardia provide access to employment opportunities for today’s youth,” said Kenneth Adams, President of LaGuardia Community College. “This grant will help us create comprehensive pathways for OSOW youth in the healthcare sector by offering training in three of our most successful healthcare certificate programs. We encourage young New Yorkers to dream big, and we welcome them to LaGuardia where they can be successful.”

The Train & Earn Program will offer placement in the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA), Central Service/Sterile Technician (CST), and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) programs, all offered through LaGuardia’s WEC.

“These programs have high enrollment rates and demand that often exceeds their current capacity,” said Dr. Claudia Baldonedo, Senior Director of Youth Workforce Development Initiatives. “More importantly, these programs produce talented and motivated professionals with state-of-the-art training who are ready to meet the challenging demands of their fields.”

Baldonedo said the success of these programs is evidenced by LaGuardia’s post-certification placement rate of over 85% for these three programs. Since its inception in 1988, the EMT program has had a 97% pass rate for students taking the NY Department of Health examination and more than 7,300 graduates.

“With DYCD Train & Earn support, LaGuardia will expand these successful programs to increase the number OSOW youth served,” Baldonedo said.

Although WEC has provided short-term (and part-time) employment opportunities to participants in its Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) and Work, Learn, and Grow (WLG), Train & Earn will expand this scope by adding career opportunities in the high-demand healthcare sector. In the WEC Train & Earn Program at LaGuardia, OSOW participants will benefit from LaGuardia’s premier certification programs, integrated support services, quality internship experiences, and clear pathways to full-time employment in quality jobs as Emergency Medical Technicians, Central Services Technician, and Medical Administrative Assistants.

Following the successful recruitment of 60 eligible youth participants per year, WEC will implement an intake-orientation-assessment process before placement to determine the participants’ basic skills assessments and service needs, including the minimum skills required by each certificate program for the students to be successful. Upon determining the areas for improvement, each training area will offer a bridge class or vestibule training to bring the participants up to the level where they can be successful in learning and passing the certification examination. The training program will also provide additional hours for bridge and test preparation as follows: EMT, 50 hours; CMAA, 30 hours; and CST, 50 hours. Instructors will also offer tutoring support outside of the required hours to ensure participant success.

Participants in the program will receive an individual assessment of needs, skills, and interests for placement in one of the certificate programs; intensive academic support, which includes tutoring, until successful completion of certification; exploration opportunities and exposure to the various aspects of the healthcare industry and employers they may access for internships and jobs via the job developer and the program team; comprehensive case management throughout each step of the program, including mental wellness services, socioemotional counseling, and academic and career guidance to help participants cope with the training, including studying and sitting for the certification exams, while navigating their daily lives and other priorities; career readiness and professional development training; and program completion placement (internship/career or advanced training) through the job developer on staff and with the assistance of LaGuardia’s Career and Technical Education Assistance Center.

Participants who earn a LaGuardia certificate of completion can earn up to six college credits towards an AS degree in Business Administration: Healthcare Management at LaGuardia Community College.

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LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC), a Hispanic-Serving Institution, located in Long Island City, Queens offers more than 50 associate degrees and academic certificates, and more than 65 continuing education programs to prepare New Yorkers for transfer to senior colleges and rewarding jobs and careers. An institution of the City University of New York (CUNY), the College reflects the legacy of our namesake, Fiorello H. LaGuardia, the former NYC mayor beloved for his advocacy of the underserved. Since 1971, LaGuardia’s academic programs and support services have advanced the socioeconomic mobility of students from Queens, NYC and beyond.

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