EVANSVILLE — Half of the Jobs for America’s Graduates programs have been eliminated for southwest Indiana as school is set to start.
The Southwest Indiana Workforce Board announced that of the 16 JAG programs in the area, only eight would be active for the 2025-26 school year. While the Evansville program, located at Bosse High School, is safe, many neighboring counties have been cut.
“Since the beginning of this year, we have diligently advocated and fought to keep the state’s support for this proven program,” the organization stated in a social media post. “Despite our relentless efforts, the state faces the loss of the critical JAG funding needed for the upcoming school year.”
Students who participate in JAG often do so during their junior and senior year of high school. The program is aimed at kids who have dealt with challenges, and teaches them employability skills as they work toward graduation.
During high school they receive mentoring, and then a year of follow-up counseling after graduation.
While in school, students participate in multiple activities and projects, including career presentations, and work on skills like critical thinking, public speaking, writing and financial literacy.
According to the nonprofit, Indiana’s program consistently graduates 95% of participants, and many choose to continue their education. Since 2006, more than 40,000 kids have participated.
Despite that success, the program became a target at the state level as a way to cut spending. Ultimately, the funding for JAG was cut from the Department of Workforce Development’s budget.
According to the Southwest Indiana Workforce Board, that cut has left the state’s 250 JAG programs to dwindle to a few dozen. Those will include:
Meanwhile, the area programs eliminated will be:
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Program that preps high-schoolers for the workforce gutted across Southwest Indiana
Reporting by Sarah Loesch, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
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