Elise - Boys & Girls Club of Milwaukee

Elise participated in the college readiness programming at the Ready Center and and enrolled in the FSET program with the goal of acquiring job readiness and customer service skills.

She completed the customer service training and was hired by Marcus Hotels, earning $12 an hour.

Her career interests range from software engineering and corporate law to political analysis.

Ciyon - Project RETURN

Ciyon enrolled into the FSET Program of August 8, 2021 and from that moment on, his future began to take a positive turn. He had physical barriers as it related to housing/homelessness, transportation, and a lack of resources for a child in his custody.

Mr. Ciyon connected with Maximus E.A specialist and Community Resource Navigator and was provided with essential resources (e.g., 1st Month rent and Security deposit assistance), he also took advantage of job leads from both Maximus and Project RETURN. In addition, the participant was referred to apply for W2 seeing that he has full custody of his son.

Consequently, Mr. Mc Nutt was offered a Fulltime position as a Machine operator and will be gainfully employed! Herein lies a perfect example of how we strive to tangibly provide resources which enable our FSET participants to be successful!

David - WCS

Sherwood enrolled into the FSET program with Wisconsin Community Services this year. He expressed interest in gaining a full-time forklift job and was able to complete his forklift training with WCS.  Shortly after, Sherwood secured a full-time job with Interstate Power Systems with pay rate of $18.00 an hour.  His new job also required non-slip resistant shoes and work attire.  FSET case manager Gloria Tate was able to provide a boot voucher, work attire voucher, and bi-weekly gas voucher to help support the continuation of Sherwood's success. 

Yosef - Literacy Services of Wisconsin

Yosef, a recent graduate of Literacy Services of Wisconsin’s HSED program, is overjoyed to have earned his high school equivalency diploma and continue his journey toward his goals.

Yosef came to the United States from Israel when he was 11 years old. Adapting to life in the United States was challenging and hard to navigate. Not long after arriving in the United States, Yosef’s mother found herself a single parent, unemployed without a support system, and raising Yosef and his younger brothers and sisters alone. Yosef was determined to find a job and support his family, but soon realized that having a high school credential was critical to finding employment. Yosef was referred to Literacy Services of Wisconsin and began preparing through the HSED Pathway course.

Today, Yosef attends the Rabbinical College of America, where he will be learning Jewish studies as well as taking online computer courses. He is excited and well prepared to further develop the skills he gained in LSW’s programs and apply them in the years ahead. Yosef is grateful for the staff, instructors, and organizations that supported him along the way. In his own words, “Now that I have completed my HSED, I feel prepared to face the difficulties of the outside world.”

Brianna - YWCA

Brianna had a tough up brining. While growing up, her and her siblings were taken away from their mom. She was placed at multiple group homes. At the age of 30, she will be receiving my high school diploma! She learned a lot by being in the YWCA HSED 5.09 program and Social Studies was a class she loved.

She plan s take different pieces of training in security and CNA. She loves animals so she hopes one day she will be working somewhere with many kinds of animals.

“Even though I know this is one huge step for me, I also know that there is much more that I need to do for me to accomplish all my life goals.”

Bobby - WRTP

Bobby was referred by a former student and faced personal barriers that prevented him from completing traditional high school. He completed the 16-week MSSC program in partnership with Literacy Services of Wisconsin, earning multiple certifications, including OSHA 30, MSSC Safety, First Aid/ CPR and his HSED.

While receiving additional support through the FSET program with transportation, bobby excelled in the training program and even had the best attendance. His confidence grew, and he even became the class leader, assisting other students when they struggled.

Bobby was hired by Snap-On Tool, as a general laborer and is now in machinist training, expected to complete in 2025 with a projected salary of over $36 / our. His goal is to buy a house and start a family.

Peter - Milwaukee Community Service Corps (MCSC)

In late 2020 amidst all the chaos of the COVID pandemic, Peter was released from 14 months in prison. During his incarceration he was in forced recovery for his addiction, so when he was released he had to make a critical choice, would he choose sobriety or another downward spiral into life wrecking addiction? Peter chose recovery and joined a 12-step program. In his straightforward way, he says, “I will forever be in recovery. Recovery is lifelong.”

In November, Peter made another important decision. At the suggestion of his FSET Case Manager, he enrolled in Milwaukee Community Service Corps’ (MCSC) HVAC training program. On his first day of training, Peter shared his barriers to success including lack of - food, housing, transportation, healthcare, and financial skills. Tanya, MCSC’s Case Manager, worked with Peter to tackle his barriers, and one-by-one he overcame them.

Peter dove into training. He earned his first industry-recognized credentials, CPR/ADE and OSHA 10 in November. In December, he completed the HVAC credential, and in January earned his Forklift certification.

Next, Peter chose to join MCSC’s Work Projects Program where he earned $11 an hour, while gaining hands-on work experience in a variety of jobs at different worksites. Peter did such a great job that he was quickly promoted to Crew Leader. In February he was promoted to a Crew Supervisor position at MCSC, where he is earning $18/hr. Recognizing his skills and ability to work well with new trainees, Peter has also been chosen to assist in teaching Forklift training.