A non-profit that helps low-income young people find meaningful careers is looking for its next batch of recruits.
“I came into the program with really just one goal, and that was to come out with a job,” said Jameela Roland, who was once homeless.
Drifting between relatives’ homes and motels, working part-time, making less than $10 an hour, she said, age 24 was her lowest point.
“It was really embarrassing. I mean, you have kind of a shame about it. I couldn't figure it out,” Roland said.
She called that her breaking point, but then she found Year Up, an organization that changed her life.
The non-profit provides young adults from low-income backgrounds with a year of job development, coursework, and corporate internships, to set them up for rewarding, life-long careers.
Roland interned at Microsoft, working on a team making videos. It was a far cry from her previous job at Office Max, but she says it motivated her to work harder.
“It's mind-blowing, it's like growing up and only eating cup noodles, just plain cup noodles, your entire life. Then all of a sudden you're invited to a buffet, and you can get anything you want, and you don't know what tastes good. So that's where I'm at right now,” she said.
Microsoft eventually hired her full-time. She's been there almost a year and has been able to buy a car and rent an apartment.
“If I want to go on vacation, I have vacation days. I can take two weeks off of work and still get paid for it. That's crazy to me,” Roland said.
Year Up is currently searching for its next batch of interns. They hope to find dozens more, like Roland, who thought they had nowhere to go, and suddenly discover opportunity.
