Grads2Careers: In Baltimore, a Push to Unlock Higher Pay for High School Graduates

The city schools, mayor’s office and an anti-poverty nonprofit team up to connect young people to job training

By Carnegie Corporation of New York September 17, 2024

Since launching in 2018, the Baltimore initiative has served about 1,100 young people in a range of fields. (Credit: Jack Duran/Carnegie Corporation of New York)

This article is part of a series featuring winners of Profiles in Collective Leadership, an initiative by Carnegie Corporation of New York in partnership with the nonprofit Transcend, that recognizes outstanding local partnerships that educate youth, bolster the workforce, and demonstrate the power of working together. The 10 nonpartisan collaborations in urban, suburban, and rural areas across the country draw on the strengths of local government, education, nonprofit, business, and health care professionals to catalyze socioeconomic mobility and civic engagement in their communities. The 10 recognized partnerships in eight states have been awarded $200,000 grants and will act as exemplars, sharing what they have learned with each other and more broadly.

Tamaury Minor was working as a hospital grill cook after high school in Baltimore but didn’t feel he was on the right path. Then a former teacher told him about Grads2Careers, which connects young people to job training, and in some cases, pays for them to learn.

Now 20, Minor is about to finish a five-month training in construction skills. He has a credential from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and is working on another for home improvements. He enjoys the hands-on work, structure and staff at Civic Works, his training provider. “I’m happy I found something where I could put my best foot forward,” he said.

Grads2Careers helps Baltimore City Public Schools graduates aged 18 to 21 who lack concrete plans to go to college. Since launching in 2018, it has served about 1,100 young people in a range of fields, including 164 who joined this calendar year. Reflecting the demographics of Baltimore public schools, most participants are African American. Some training options offer wages.

The initiative grew out of teamwork by the city school system, the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development and a nonprofit called Baltimore’s Promise, which brings together local agencies to combat poverty and improve children’s lives. Sobering statistics spurred them on: One study found that 26 percent of the Class of 2009 from Baltimore City Public Schools weren’t in the formal labor market or pursuing higher education by the fall after high school graduation. While some eventually went to work or college, those who were disengaged in fall 2009 had a median annual income of only $11,000 after six years. Few earned a living wage.

By the Numbers

Grads2Careers has provided 1,097 training slots as of July 2024 in tracks including biotechnology, healthcare, property management, construction, IT, automotive and early childhood education.

About 69 percent of of participants finish their training.

The average starting wage for completers was $16.52 an hour in 2023.

Grads2Careers recruits in high schools, in the belief that if low-income teenagers can be connected to opportunities early on, they will have much better chances for long-term success.

Travis Robertson, 25, got a nine-month internship in property management through the program. In time that turned into a full-time job with Continental Realty Corporation, where he fixes appliances and solves maintenance problems.

“Working a job you don't like with no real opportunity to grow, it takes a toll on you,” he said. “Now I get up and go to work and feel more purposeful. People get locked out and have plumbing issues. Coming in to save the day makes me feel good.”

Grads2Careers costs $8.5 million for 2021 through 2025, paid through a mix of philanthropy, state funds and federal aid. That covers job training, student stipends, transportation, mental health support and staff. It also offers summer academic preparation to help students advance in a wide range of fields, including health care, information technology and construction.

Julia Baez, executive director of Baltimore’s Promise, said Grads2Careers has a strong return on investment. Baltimore’s Promise says that among Black men, the G2C completers across all years had a median annual income of about $27,000 as of 2022; that sum was estimated to be roughly $10,000 higher than the median for Black men in the Class of 2009 from Baltimore public schools who didn’t attend college, and $5,000 higher than the median for those with college degrees. Baez added that G2C completers’ earnings would likely increase over time.

The initiative’s alumni are contributing to civic infrastructure and the tax base, Baez said. “They are recruiting other young people to join these opportunities. They are diversifying workplaces in our city, and helping adults learn what it looks like to work with an engaged, passionate young person.”

Donnice E. Brown, assistant director, chief of youth services at the Mayor's Office of Employment Development, said the initiative has boosted local industry, enabling it “to have new and fresh entry-level employees.”

About 69 percent of young people in G2C finish it — just shy of its goal of 70 percent. Participants’ mental health, child care needs, unstable housing and other can get in the way. Some participants don’t know how to ask for help and need coaching to do so, Brown said.

Sometimes, even young Baltimore high school graduates don’t meet the minimum threshold of eighth-grade literacy and sixth-grade math skills required to start job training. Grads2Careers offers a free six-week summer prep program to improve their reading and math test scores so they can qualify. They receive an “earn as you learn” stipend while attending classes for seven hours a day.

Baltimore’s Promise’s Baez said G2C’s success stems from the “intentionality of the partnership” among the nonprofit, schools, mayor’s office and business sector. “We’re always in communication,” she said. “We focus on knowing where the kids are in the pipeline at all times, what else is happening and what we should be considering. We learn together and we’re committed to the goal.”

The initiative is working to connect with students earlier, by spreading the word in ninth grade and developing apprenticeships for high school students. It is also adding a new track for G2C alumni to earn additional credentials to unlock the potential for higher wages.

Jada Gardner, a 2019 graduate of G2C, is now on the alumni track to get her Patient Care Tech certification. At 23, she has already been using her credentials as a certified nursing assistant and geriatric nursing assistant to support her three-year-old daughter. She plans to continue studying at Morgan State University in the fall and keep working.

“My daughter made me a better person and made me want to strive more,” she said. “I have to continue to push forward.”