Youth Job Center

Consider this your official invitation... ✨📬 Join us on April 24 to connect with fellow community members, celebrate and learn about Youth Job Center's successes, and support young professionals and job-seekers across Chicagoland. Reserve your spot at youthjobcenter.org/gala — and invite a friend!

Meet Sarai Garza, one of our 2025 gala honorees. Sarai has been instrumental as YJC's program officer at LISC, helping us become subgrantees for valuable opportunities like R3, the Wells Fargo Savings Match Program, and the AT&T Digital Equity Initiative, among others. She also provides indispensable guidance on operating our Financial Opportunity Center® program, including collaborating on long-term strategy to ensure maximum success for our clients and ongoing funding for our programs. On top of all that, she's a strong spokesperson and ally for YJC in the community. Our young people have access to a markedly wider range of resources thanks to the incredible support we've gotten from Sarai.   🔹 About Sarai 🔹 Sarai Garza is a Senior Program Officer of Financial Opportunities at LISC. With a strong background in program management and stakeholder engagement, Sarai collaborates with local organizations, community agencies, and private sector partners to drive impactful solutions. Sarai provides oversight and field support to a network of Financial Opportunities Centers® in Chicago and central Illinois, assisting sites with using and implementing FOC best practices for an integrated service delivery model of career development and placement, financial coaching, digital skills training, and income supports access. Prior to LISC, Sarai served as a financial coach and then managed a Financial Opportunity Center® for a total of 17 years dedicated to this work.   Come celebrate Sarai—and all of Youth Job Center's supporters, clients, and successes—at our annual gala on April 24! Find all the details at youthjobcenter.org/gala.

Consider this your official invitation... ✨📬 Join us on April 24 to connect with fellow community members, celebrate and learn about Youth Job Center's successes, and support young professionals and job-seekers across Chicagoland. Reserve your spot at youthjobcenter.org/gala — and invite a friend!

Happy Volunteer Appreciation Month! YJC's volunteers are dedicated, talented, generous people whom we—and our clients—are incredibly lucky to work with. Thank you to everyone who donates their time and energy to make the world a better and more equitable place. ❤️

We need your support! Total transparency here: In order to continue providing services to the young people who need them most—especially amidst federal funding uncertainty—we need support from people like you. One easy (and fun) way to support us: Come to our gala this month! By purchasing a ticket, you’ll be directly contributing to our resilience in these unpredictable times—and, by extension, helping to make sure that local young people get the help they need to build their own independence and become engaged community members themselves. Buy a ticket—and strengthen our community—here: youthjobcenter.org/gala

Congratulations to Sara Algawerash, our new This Way ONWard (TWO) Project Manager! A conscientious team player with a can-do attitude and a genuine passion for her clients, Sara has worked for YJC since February 2023 as our Healthcare & IT Pathways Program Coordinator, connecting clients with career-launching certifications; valuable paid work experiences and permanent jobs; and thoughtful one-on-one support. As of today, Sara has been promoted to TWO Project Manager, a position that will find her overseeing our partnership program with Old Navy. (The TWO program provides young people with personalized employment training and meaningful employment experience at Old Navy stores throughout the Chicagoland area.) Sara is an undisputed YJC rock star, and we’re thrilled to have her helming the TWO program. Stay tuned for more details about openings in our upcoming TWO cohort!

Congratulations to Sara Algawerash, our new This Way ONWard (TWO) Project Manager! A conscientious team player with a can-do attitude and a genuine passion for her clients, Sara has worked for YJC since February 2023 as our Healthcare & IT Pathways Program Coordinator, connecting clients with career-launching certifications; valuable paid work experiences and permanent jobs; and thoughtful one-on-one support. As of today, Sara has been promoted to TWO Project Manager, a position that will find her overseeing our partnership program with Old Navy. (The TWO program provides young people with personalized employment training and meaningful employment experience at Old Navy stores throughout the Chicagoland area.) Sara is an undisputed YJC rock star, and we’re thrilled to have her helming the TWO program. Stay tuned for more details about openings in our upcoming TWO cohort!

The deadline to submit a YJC program book ad is one week away! Reserve yours at youthjobcenter.org/gala.

Kendall joined YJC three years ago as a high school student looking for a part-time job. Today, he’s an experienced JavaScript coder heading for a career in I.T. Kendall started off in YJC’s retail pathway program, learning about different job interview styles, the ins and outs of retail work, and how to conduct himself in a professional setting. As a result, he landed a position at his local Old Navy, which gave him real-world working experience and a strong start to his resume. However, Kendall’s longtime interest was computers, and his discussions with the team at YJC helped him realize that he could turn that interest into a career. He found a specific field of I.T. that felt like an exciting fit—cybersecurity—and enrolled in YJC’s eight-week coding program. Kendall excelled in the program, grasping the material quickly and talking his peers through the trickier coding equations. By the end of the course, Kendall had  built a fully functional e-commerce app and earned a certificate in computer programming language JavaScript. Now, he's at Eastern Illinois University pursuing an I.T. degree and working to build a career in the field. Another thing Kendall is doing? Giving back! He's been onboarded as a YJC volunteer and will be offering one-on-one tutoring twice a week to clients in the next I.T. program cohort. This gives Kendall the opportunity to support other young people, keep his own coding skills sharp, and add formal I.T. experience to his resume. Bravo, Kendall—way to pursue your passion, put your skills to good use, and pay it forward at the same time! ⭐ Plus: ⭐ Kendall also enrolled in YJC’s savings match program, which included one-on-one sessions with a financial coach. These conversations introduced him to the world of stock-trading and investment strategy, which quickly became a new passion for Kendall. He’s now significantly bolstered his savings thanks to his new investment accounts.

Next month, we'll be honoring community champion and youth advocate Dave Davis at our annual gala. Dave has served on the YJC Board of Directors for ten years, generously offering his time, energy, and expertise. He also serves on the Executive Committee and has helped YJC secure new grants and sponsorships to support and expand our youth-serving programs. 🔹 About Dave 🔹 Dave Davis serves as the Senior Executive Director of Neighborhood and Community Relations at Northwestern University, where he strengthens ties between the University and the City of Evanston through strategic partnerships, advocacy, and innovative programs. Under his leadership, the University successfully secured approval for the Ryan Field project—the largest capital project in Evanston’s history—and he negotiated a landmark $150M Community Benefits Agreement, providing substantial economic benefits and uplifting local businesses. He has championed initiatives like the Evanston Guaranteed Income Program and ANCHOR Grants—demonstrating his commitment to racial equity, economic inclusion, education, and community-driven solutions. Dave’s collaborative approach, policy expertise, and passion for social impact make him a leading figure in university-community relations and civic engagement. Come celebrate Dave—and all of Youth Job Center's supporters, clients, and successes—at our annual gala on April 24! Find all the details at youthjobcenter.org/gala.