The once-bustling hallways and dorms at the Wind River Job Corps site in Riverton, Wyoming are now relatively quiet, students say.
Earlier this year, there were about 200 young people enrolled in the high school and career-path program. Now, there’s around 100.
That’s according to 22-year-old Kay Huven from Moorcroft, Wyo. Some students rushed to get their high school degrees and trade certificates. Others, like Huven, chose to leave early amid all the uncertainty.
“So, I was just like, I can't really depend on something that's always a ‘what if’ because of this whole thing that’s going on,” said Huven.
The fate of Job Corps is currently unclear. The U.S. Department of Labor tried to suspend programs nationally last month, but the National Job Corps Association, a trade group, sued and temporarily blocked the shutdown.
On June 17, the association and other supporters argued in a New York federal court that the labor department’s move was “irrational” and that only Congress can shutter sites. Twenty states, including Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada, backed them up.
But the federal agency has said it’s allowed to suspend contracts with the operators that run the Job Corps sites, and it points to a multi-million-dollar deficit.
A judge extended the order blocking the shutdown until at least June 25, when he could grant a longer-term injunction. A group of Job Corps students from across the country also separately filed a class action lawsuit in a District of Columbia federal court on June 18 to keep the program going.
Meanwhile, national news reports show trends of students leaving.
In Wyoming, Huven is just trying to land on her feet by saving money to become independent. She was studying building construction technology but decided to leave before getting her trade degree, also leaving behind free housing through the program.
Huven has found new housing in Gillette, but she still needs a job.
“I even went on Facebook and said, ‘Hey, I just need something to do, like maybe walk your dog or clip your cat's claws. I don't care,’” she said.
According to Jerri Prejean, an administrator at the Wind River Job Corps site, “Many students have either completed or left on their accord to start their futures.”
Regardless of what happens with the lawsuits, Congress could also decide to cut funding for Job Corps in its budget bill.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by CPB.
