US Forest Service and historically Black colleges unite to boost diversity in wildland firefighting

ACCESS Development Services trains women to drive electric auto rickshaws, providing them with marketable skills that help them earn a living independently. The all-women Pink City Rickshaw Company employs the women to provide tours throughout the city and has since trained over 200 women.

A partnership between Essex Tech North Shore Agricultural & Technical High School, and Local 22 trade union members is teaching students union norms and trade skills early in their career, connecting them to apprenticeships and greater career opportunities. Other states, including Maryland and Louisiana, have similar programs and students report feeling a greater sense of job security and that they can command higher pay from employers due to the expertise gained from the program.

The Daughters of the Heart of Mary work to train people within the church, specifically nuns and priests, to become social workers. The group came to India in 1951, and currently teaches about 600 students in both bachelor's and master's courses in social work, as well as counseling and psychology.

The UWM Student Success & Talent Pipeline Initiative is helping to connect students with internships that provide meaningful professional experiences for those about to enter the workforce. One of the initiative’s biggest goals is diversifying the talent pipeline, adding more Black, Indigenous, and other people of color to the workforce throughout the state, hoping to reduce the number of graduates who move out of state for work.

The Sickle Cell Aid Foundation teaches tech skills to those with sickle cell anemia to increase their employability and spearhead an inclusive tech industry. Since launching, the organization has trained and graduated 20 individuals with coding skills.

The Peniel Foundation virtually connects people with disabilities with mentors to help them learn to achieve their goals, level up their career skills to access to better jobs and become financially independent. Since forming, the foundation has seen thousands join the program and go on to have great success in their careers and personal lives.

About “1,500 (High School) students from 75 of the nation’s poorest schools in 35 cities,” are enrolling in college courses in elite universities like Harvard and Columbia through an initiative started by a nonprofit—and succeeding. The aim of the program is to prepare underprivileged students for the rigors of college education, and give them a confidence boost before they enter college. They complete the same coursework as the college students and get a grade. “All of these schools talk this game, ‘We want diversity, but we can’t find these kids,’ and this proves they can build a pipeline."

Arizona's Inmate Wildfire Program trains incarcerated people to fight wildfires, paying them low prison wages to provide a critically needed service as wildfires grow more common. Members of the only all-female crew, from Perryville Prison, tell of their pride of accomplishment in doing a dangerous job, and of the rehabilitative benefits of the program. They also describe their frustrations when regulations often bar them from using their skills after release from prison.

The Fire and Forestry Recruitment Program serves as an intermediary between formerly incarcerated people trained as firefighters and the agencies they seek work from once they have been released from prison. California has long used incarcerated firefighters in its wildfire-fighting work, paying them poverty wages and then usually denying them the jobs they're trained for outside prison. FFRP has helped more than 100 such people find jobs, using training, certifications, and job-searching help. Its services are in high demand as a lower prison population coincides with record wildfires.

Career Advance, and the Warren Village, are two anti-poverty programs built on the “two-generation model,” which “focuses on providing coordinated, high-quality services to both children and their parents under the umbrella of one program.” Prior efforts only focused on children. The approach seems to be a successful study. The Career Advance program found that sixty-one percent of participants earned a post-secondary credential after one year in the program, compared to just 3 percent of those in the control group.”