OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. -- Justin Otero comes from a low-income neighborhood. He found himself in the juvenile justice system. Barriers kept him from finishing high school.

  • YouthBuild teaches construction skills
  • Designed for at-risk youth, high school dropouts
  • The program is a partnership between Valencia College and Goodwill

"I was probably that kid who probably thought everything is too hard," Otero said. "I can't make it. I did a mistake."

Although he's been through a lot, Otero has found something to keep him going, YouthBuild.

It's a program that takes at-risk youth ages 16-24 and places them in a c​onstruction-based education track where they learn the skills and techniques to prepare them for the work field.

"YouthBuild part of it is helping the young person, the other part of it is helping the community where that young person is coming from," said Michelle Sanchez, the project director for YouthBuild Program. "So those neighborhoods where those kids are coming from that need renovation that are abandoned."

"Those houses need help so what we did was the YouthBuild students get their training on this campus and then they go out into the community and we search for low income families who need help with fixing and renovating their house," she added.

The program is a partnership between Valencia College and Goodwill.

"For the students who are part of YouthBuild, it's not just the case management and teaching that occurs in the classroom," said Maria Cherjovsky, VP of Mission Services & Workforce Innovation for Goodwill of Central Florida. "But also the services that we offer just across the street at our Kissimmee Job Connection Center."

Through YouthBuild, Otero has earned his GED and a nationally-recognized construction credential. He hopes to one day open his own construction business.

"For some people it might be very hard but YouthBuild steps in to help me out with that," Otero said. "It's created and opened so many doors and opportunities and all that or me to go better in life."

The YouthBuild program is part of Valencia's five-year impact plan which creates pathways for young people to enroll in its campus.