Northern Wisconsin job center helped thousands. Now, Trump administration has it on the chopping block

Justine Anderson became homeless shortly after her 16th birthday. Without any support from family or friends, she felt destitute. 

Four years later, Anderson moved to Wisconsin from Texas and discovered the school that would alter the trajectory of her life. 

"I found Blackwell on a website and I just applied to see what I could do about getting in," Anderson said. "And the admissions counselor was on the spot about making sure I got in."

Located in the heart of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest and near the northern Wisconsin town of Laona, Blackwell Job Corps Center is one of 25 Civilian Conservation Centers (CCCs) operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For more than 50 years, Blackwell has provided free vocational training to thousands of 16- to 24-year-olds in trades ranging from carpentry to office administration. In the past six years, it has placed nearly 800 students into jobs, according to center data.

"Blackwell's pretty great," said Anderson, who is training to become a carpenter. "It takes a lot for me to learn things and comprehend them, but they’re really good here about approaching from different directions on how to explain things." 

In late May, the Trump administration essentially ended the rural job corps program. The Department of Labor announced a plan to transfer 16 of the 25 centers from the USDA to the U.S. Department of Labor, where they will likely be put under private management. The remaining nine — including Blackwell — will be closed.

A Labor Department news release said that the move "creates an opportunity to serve a greater number of students at higher performing centers at a lower cost to taxpayers by modernizing and reforming part of the Job Corps program."

The news came as a surprise to everyone at Blackwell, as well as the people and businesses in Forest County who depend on it. 

Center Director Ron Cubit said the announcement was “totally unexpected” and “a total shock.”

Mark Ferris, the director of the Forest County Economic Development Partnership, said the announcement "really came out of the blue."

In the days after the announced closure, Cubit said, "It's been really challenging here as far as morale goes." Anderson described the overall mood of the student body as "depressing — really depressing."

“You see all these faces, and a lot of people are like, ‘I came here to get my life right and get a stepping stone to being an adult,’ ” Anderson said. 

The closure is a "really significant blow to the town of Blackwell, the surrounding communities and, of course, the county as well," Ferris said.

A significant loss in Forest County 

According to USDA data from April, Blackwell has 127 students and employs a faculty of 56. Its operating budget is a little more than $5 million. 

"In that $5 million-plus budget, much of that money is spent locally, using local suppliers and businesses," Ferris said. "We're a county of under 9,000 people. So while some might look at a $5 million budget as not that significant, it is here in Forest County."

Beyond the economic investment, Blackwell students are heavily involved in the community through volunteer work. According to data provided by Cubit, Blackwell students collectively logged more than 6,000 hours of community service in 2018. 

James Hendrick, a former student who graduated more than a year ago, said he remembers going out and laying concrete for a baseball field and putting up a sign for a ranger station. 

"They really do a good job of reaching out into the community," he said.

Last week, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) joined 50 Democrats and Republicans from both houses of Congress in signing a letter to U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta and Agriculture Secretary Sunny Perdue, calling on them to reconsider the decision. 

"The 25 CCCs operate in 17 national forests and grasslands across 16 states and aim to train over 4,000 youth and young adults, many of whom are at-risk individuals originating from low-income, rural communities," the letter says. "These centers not only help support these underserved youth and young adults with invaluable job training, but they also provide essential capacity for the U.S. Forest Service to fulfill its mission and provide economic opportunities in rural areas."

Baldwin also teamed up with a bipartisan group of senators to introduce the Job Corps Protection Act, which would block the administration from using federal funds to close any of the rural jobs centers. 

On Tuesday, Baldwin escalated her criticism of the administration's decision and emphasized the crucial role Blackwell plays in Wisconsin.

"When I travel around Wisconsin, I hear repeatedly about the need to 'skill up' our nation's workforce," Baldwin said in a statement. "I hear from employers who are turning away work or are unable to compete for business because they can't find the skilled workers needed to fill open jobs. I also hear from students who are anxious to work and start a career but are unable to get the training they need to secure employment."

Baldwin also defended Blackwell against the labor department's assertion that it was closing centers who were underperforming. 

"Blackwell in the last rankings was 14th out of 125," she said in an interview. "That struck me as something that needed to be responded to."

Last week, the Trump administration announced that it had reversed its decision to close a job corps center in Montana that was one of the nine targeted for closure. 

But the future of Blackwell and the other seven centers remains uncertain.

If the administration goes forward as planned, the centers will likely shutter by September.

Anderson said she thinks she'll be able to finish her education at Blackwell before the center closes. She expressed optimism about her future employment prospects. 

“My real concern is that the staff and future students who won’t be able to come here and get the chance to take this opportunity and use it out in the world," she said.