Public Statement Regarding Job Point’s Efforts to Save YouthBuild

Over the last 60 years, it has been our great privilege to serve as a community partner in providing education, training and employment services for our neighbors facing significant barriers in their lives.

In fact, we owe our entire existence to the desire and ambition of a group of citizens, the Columbia Cosmopolitan Luncheon Club, who came together to solve a problem they saw in their community. As we embark on the next 60 years, we honor their legacy by leaning into that same drive and passion to find creative solutions that meet the needs of our community.

About 22 years ago, that creative energy saw the development of what we now know as Job Point’s YouthBuild program. Under the passionate guidance of founding director, Gary Taylor, this program has primarily focused on helping young people who lack both a high school diploma and financial resources to reclaim their education and develop the skills needed to succeed at home and in life. This includes earning their high school diploma or equivalent and vocational certifications in a skilled trade, leadership development, volunteerism with an emphasis on communication and other life skills.

We are proud of this program and the transformation it has made possible for thousands of young people in this community since 2003.  With the current climate at the federal level, we are exploring a variety of avenues to replace funding from the Department of Labor for this vital program.

Options identified include state or local sources such as Missouri Workforce Development funds, Missouri Department Economic Development Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP) and/or Youth Opportunity Program (YOP), ServMo, and County or City resources.  Other possibilities include corporate sponsorships, private foundations and personal donations.  Many of these sources may be difficult to secure, and even if awarded may not be guaranteed on an ongoing basis.

At this time, the most certain, secure and stable source seems to be to establish a public charter school.  As we embark on this journey, we want to assure our partners and stakeholders that we did not come to the decision to explore the opening of a public charter school lightly. Through this process, our hearts desire is to ensure the long-term stability and expansion of a program that has dutifully served so many students over the last 22 years.

We are humbled by the decision of the Missouri Charter Public School Commission to approve our Letter of Intent and Prospectus on October 9th at their meeting. We know that this is just the beginning of what will be a tedious process.  For a school to open by August of 2027, there is an extensive application process with a strict timeline, and numerous steps that must be followed, which is why Job Point has initiated the process while still exploring other possibilities.

With a 60-year proven track record of successful educational and vocational outcomes, we are confident in our ability to provide a high-quality education in Boone County that is free and open to all students no matter their history.

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