HomeMy WebLinkAbout7.27.22 Board Correspondence - FW_ Back 2 Work program cleans, uplifts communities
From:Paulsen, Shaina
To:BOS
Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: Back 2 Work program cleans, uplifts communities
Date:Wednesday, July 27, 2022 8:03:03 AM
Please see Board Correspondence below.
Shaina Paulsen
Associate Clerk of The Board
Butte County Administration
25 County Center Drive, Suite 200, Oroville, CA 95965
T: 530.552.3304 | F: 530.538.7120
From: Caltrans District 2 - Public Information Office <samantha.oreilly@dot.ca.gov>
Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2022 5:05 PM
To: Clerk of the Board <clerkoftheboard@buttecounty.net>
Subject: Back 2 Work program cleans, uplifts communities
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Caltrans contracts with Butte County Office of Education and the Elijah House Foundation
State of California • Department of Transportation
Media Advisory
Date: July 26, 2022
District: District 2
Contact: Samantha O’Reilly
Phone: (530)768-3037
Back 2 Work program cleans, uplifts community
Butte County Office of Education and the Elijah House Foundation
contracts with Caltrans to help transition people back into the workforce
Shasta and Lassen County — Clean California is working hard in your community. You may have
noticed more workers picking up garbage along our roadways. California has invested $1.1
billion into the Clean California program to transform and clean public spaces near highways.
This program includes the creation of an estimated 11,000 jobs, including low-barrier jobs for
people experiencing or exiting homelessness, at-risk youth, veterans, and those re-entering from
incarceration.
Caltrans has contracted with the Butte County Office of Education (BCOE) and the Elijah House
Foundation (EHF) which provides transitional employment through litter abatement services for
Caltrans through the Back 2 Work Program. The Elijah House Foundation has been working to
uplift the community through evidence-based practice since 2015. Organization founder Joseph
Henderson sought to provide high-quality support that he would feel comfortable receiving for
those within the criminal justice population. Since its inception, EHF has expanded its services to
include other populations in need of counseling, addiction services, homeless shelters, sober
living environments, and employment development.
“Most of the people employed by the Elijah House have experienced difficulties in the past and
have a heart for people trying to get back on their feet,” said Michael Kimsey, operations
supervisor at the Elijah House Foundation.
Roger Lucas, District 2 Maintenance Supervisor II said he is excited to be working with Butte
County Office of Education and the Elijah House Foundation with implementation of two SPP
crews in District 2. The SPP crews will be providing needed litter abatement along our highways
in the Redding, Red Bluff and Corning areas as well as Susanville to California/Nevada state line.
“It’s exciting to see the impacts these groups have on our local communities employing
individuals entering the workforce and providing a service to the community,” said Lucas. “I look
forward to working with the Butte Office of Education and Elijah House Foundation for many
years to come.”
Program Director Back 2 Work Elijah House Gary Deas said that he always hires within the
community his crews are working in. The Redding area Back 2 Work team is a small, energetic
group that works within 130 miles of Redding. Deas said that he was able to hire 8 employees
within the first day of advertising positions for a litter pickup crew in Susanville. Less than a week
later these job seekers were already out cleaning up roadways in Lassen County. EHF is actively
recruiting part-time workers in District 2 and other parts of the state.
“The Back 2 Work program also helps people in the community that normally cannot get a job.
\[Their past\] doesn’t matter or where they’re at now,” said Gary Deas. “We give them that
chance. We offer full wraparound services, job development, counseling, different trainings to
be able to get them new jobs. That’s part of what this program is about.”
Caltrans hired more than 700 new team members as part of Clean California, including 470
maintenance positions to collect litter and remove graffiti. Forty-five of these maintenance
workers have already earned promotions within the department. Caltrans also expanded its
partnership with the Butte County Office of Education Back 2 Work program, adding 82 crews in
counties throughout California. The $127 million contract has already created 760 jobs and will
fund more than 4,000 positions that provide income and job training to Californians who have
experienced barriers to employment. Learn more about how Clean California is transforming
communities at CleanCA.com.
To learn more about the Elijah House Foundation and the Back 2 Work program visit
https://elijahhousefoundation.org/back-2-work-program/.
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