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(Miami, FL) February 28, 2019 – The Miami-Dade Beacon Council, the County’s official public-private economic development partnership, is pleased to announce Miami Community Ventures (MCV). This One Community One Goal initiative is designed to connect low-income, structurally unemployed individuals to living wage jobs while diversifying and strengthening our economy. The program targets individuals who need public assistance, returning citizens and veteran sub-groups.
The Miami Community Ventures (MCV) program is based on an existing award-winning program in Michigan, which generated successful state-audited results. MCV has been designed to empower participants to succeed long-term, providing wrap-around support services in the areas of transportation, job training, child care, success coaching, education (emphasizing financial literacy), and social services for up to two years in order to ensure their successful transition into the workforce.
“This is a workforce initiative that can permanently and positively impact our community. Support from We need local businesses to support this program to help alleviate poverty in our under-served communities,” said Michael A. Finney, President & CEO of the Miami-Dade Beacon Council. “This program helps give people who never thought they would be able to actively participate in our workforce a viable opportunity to succeed.”
A four-month pilot was launched in three communities in January 2019: Liberty City, Overtown, and Goulds. The objective is to have 77 structurally unemployed individuals hired at the living wage ($13.44+) by the end of April 2019. The pilot initiative is being tracked closely, with learnings implemented when the program is later rolled out county-wide throughout Miami-Dade.
Thirty-seven community supporters are on-board as the program continues to recruit and identify companies that are willing to provide employment opportunities for structurally unemployed talent. Uber, a transportation network which offers services including peer-to-peer ridesharing, food delivery and more, has signed up to support the program as both a service provider—supplying transportation—and as an employer.
“Access to reliable transportation is a common barrier for many in our community seeking employment,” said Kasra Moshkani, Director/Head of South, Uber. “Uber is proud to work with the Miami-Dade Beacon Council through their Miami Community Ventures Program in order to expand earning opportunities for those who have faced roadblocks with employment options.”
The program has been made possible thanks to the support of sponsors including Allegany Franciscan Ministries, BankUnited, CareerSource South Florida, Florida Blue Foundation and SunTrust.
“Florida Blue is committed to the many aspects of our community’s health and well-being, and proud to support Miami Community Ventures,” says Florida Blue Market President Penny Shaffer. “We look forward to working with The Beacon Council and other stakeholders to make our communities safer, to alleviate poverty and to connect people with sustainable living-wage jobs.”
For more information about Miami Community Ventures, please contact scolas@www.beaconcouncil.com.
