Good Life Manufacturing

Lost Angels Children’s Project (LACP) is honored to be an LA2050 Grants Challenge finalist. While our programs are designed to create opportunities for youth and young adults, we remain flexible to the communities we serve and are always ready to meet emerging needs. The COVID-19 crisis has altered the way we do business right now but our mission stays the same to improve the lives of vulnerable youth—particularly those affected by the child welfare and/or juvenile justice systems. In April 2020, we began a campaign for hunger relief, knowing that most of the families we serve experience food insecurity. We created t-shirts for charity, started fundraising online, and worked with local partners to secure healthy meals in ready to eat containers for distribution. The program has increased from 300 meals per week and 50 families, to currently 2000 meals per week and over 200 families. Recognizing the dire need for basic supplies in our nearby mobile home communities, we also found resources to purchase essential goods such as toilet paper, soap, baby wipes, detergent, sanitizer, masks, and more. On hot days we hand out popsicles, and also purchased toys, games and activities for our students and the neighborhood children who are staying “safer at home.” We will continue on this path for as long as needed; however, we expect to soon start back up with our social enterprise program for opportunity youth ages 18-24. In the next phase of CA reopening, we hope we can bring back our cohort of 10 students who are learning the Industrial Arts through Good Life Mfg. It is possible to social distance in the Lost Angels Children’s Project Industrial Arts Youth Center and we are confident our students will stay safe with proper PPE.

Antelope Valley

Pilot project or new program

LACP is not submitting a collaborative proposal. All proposed activities will be conducted at the LACP Industrial Arts Youth Center. However, we will continue to partner with the City of Lancaster, America's Job Center of California, and Los Angeles County Office of Education to ensure that participants have a comprehensive support system.

Located in Lancaster, an under-resourced community with high unemployment, poverty, homelessness, and the largest rates of child abuse, neglect and foster youth, LACP aims to provide a continuum of services that assist in breaking this cycle of poor outcomes and create opportunities for young adults to thrive. LACP developed Good Life Mfg. as a day-work program for youth 18-24 to learn the industrial arts with job skills that will significantly increase their chances of finding employment that pays a living wage. The program is targeted to transitional-aged, probation, and diversion youth who are CalWORKS recipients that are enrolled in LA County's GAIN and GROW programs. This population of opportunity youth are supported with comprehensive job training, educational and social services from LACP, the City of Lancaster, America's Job Center of California, and the Los Angeles County of Education. Good Life Mfg. will produce high-quality furniture by skilled laborers at LACP.

Since 2014, LACP has provided vocational training and life skills development for foster, probation and socio-economically disadvantaged youth ages 13-18 through vocational Classic Car Restoration and Customization workshops. This program has proven successful in engaging youth in an innovative way to teach hands-on car maintenance and repair. LACP has incorporated creative arts and educational field trips to support STEAM education and foster interest in learning. Recognizing a need for continued support of at-risk youth in Lancaster, LACP developed Good Life Mfg. with the goal to ensure young adults can obtain work at a living wage - not minimum wage. LACP has the support of community members, foundations, and the the City to take on this work and provide better opportunities for vulnerable youth. The vision is to ensure all young adults graduating from LACP programming will be employed and will gain an improved quality of life.

Good Life Mfg. is expected to have a positive impact in the Antelope Valley, and for at-risk and high-risk groups of opportunity youth. Recognizing a lack of employment for young adults, particularly those transitioning out of foster care or the juvenile justice system without life skills, LACP is providing an innovative solution for preparing youth for the workplace. This program teaches industrial arts with hands-on application, offers paid apprenticeship, and opens opportunities for employment at a living wage. In addition, our younger students are motivated by Good Life Mfg. participant success—providing a continuum of services at LACP.

LACP will track and record the following criteria as a method of evaluation: 1) The number of students that receive certification in manufacturing as an intern and apprentice; 2) The number of students that complete 2460 hours of On-The-Job Training; 3) The number of orders received for Social Enterprise; 4) The number of sales made by the Social Enterprise; 5.) The profit margin of the Social Enterprise; and, 6.) The Growing Network of the Social Enterprise.\n\nHigh-level indicators that will serve as instruments to measure change over time and detect progress include the following:\n1)\tClass Enrollment at Maximum Capacity\n2)\tHigh Passage Rate of personal/professional competencies course\n3)\tHigh Number \“Manufacturing\” Certifications Issued: intern and apprentice\n4)\tComplete 240 hours of On-The-Job Training\n5)\tApprentices selected for a job interview with a Manufacturing Employer\n6)\tJob offers received and accepted from a Manufacturing Employer\n7)\tNumber of Orders Received for Social Enterprise\n8)\tSales \n9.) Profits\n10.) Growing Network (of consumer base)\n\nLACP has recently released a catalog of industrial furniture that will be manufactured through Good Life Mfg. (https://www.lostangelscp.org/goodlifemfg). Our organization is working to secure contracts for producing mass quantities of products, but will also fulfill individual orders. We expect a continuous flow and demand for manufacturing that will ensure each cohort of students has the opportunity to learn, apprentice and become employed.

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