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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives wish to commend the Illinois YouthBuild | ||||||
| 4 | Coalition (IYC) and its members for their dedication and hard | ||||||
| 5 | work; and | ||||||
| 6 | WHEREAS, The IYC was founded by former President Kerry | ||||||
| 7 | Knodle in 1996; the following year, the coalition advocated | ||||||
| 8 | for the passage of the Illinois YouthBuild Act by the Illinois | ||||||
| 9 | General Assembly, creating a mechanism for launching and | ||||||
| 10 | funding programs; and | ||||||
| 11 | WHEREAS, The IYC is dedicated to expanding employment and | ||||||
| 12 | career opportunities for socially and economically | ||||||
| 13 | disadvantaged young adults by advocating for an increase of | ||||||
| 14 | quality resources and community involvement; the coalition | ||||||
| 15 | partners with opportunity youth, or those aged 16 to 24, to | ||||||
| 16 | build a safe, secure, and supportive force for change in the | ||||||
| 17 | larger community; and | ||||||
| 18 | WHEREAS, The IYC is supported by YouthBuild USA and is | ||||||
| 19 | comprised of 18 YouthBuild programs in Illinois, which are | ||||||
| 20 | located in Aurora, Bloomington, Champaign, Chicago Heights, | ||||||
| 21 | Decatur, East St. Louis, Godfrey, North Chicago, Rockford, | ||||||
| 22 | Rock Island, Waukegan, and Chicago, and other youth-serving | ||||||
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| 1 | organizations with similar purposes; the coalition's member | ||||||
| 2 | organizations all operate their programs according to the | ||||||
| 3 | YouthBuild Model; and | ||||||
| 4 | WHEREAS, The IYC's YouthBuild is a youth and community | ||||||
| 5 | development program that simultaneously addresses core issues | ||||||
| 6 | facing low-income communities, including housing, education, | ||||||
| 7 | employment, crime prevention, and youth leadership | ||||||
| 8 | development; and | ||||||
| 9 | WHEREAS, The IYC's YouthBuild programs serve low-income | ||||||
| 10 | young people aged 16 to 24 facing barriers to success, | ||||||
| 11 | including foster care, homelessness, and juvenile justice; | ||||||
| 12 | these young people are traditionally known as disenfranchised, | ||||||
| 13 | marginalized, at risk, and disconnected, and they are too | ||||||
| 14 | often defined by the struggles they face both socially and | ||||||
| 15 | economically; and | ||||||
| 16 | WHEREAS, Through the IYC's YouthBuild programs, low-income | ||||||
| 17 | young people aged 16 to 24 can work toward their GED or high | ||||||
| 18 | school diploma while learning the skills of the construction | ||||||
| 19 | industry through hands-on construction activities; and | ||||||
| 20 | WHEREAS, The IYC believes that the goals, dreams, and | ||||||
| 21 | aspirations of every young person are real, and these young | ||||||
| 22 | people should be seen for who they really are and should | ||||||
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| 1 | receive support, as every young person deserves the | ||||||
| 2 | opportunity to develop their untapped potential; and | ||||||
| 3 | WHEREAS, The IYC will hold its annual Advocacy Day at the | ||||||
| 4 | State Capitol on April 30, 2025; therefore, be it | ||||||
| 5 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 6 | HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 7 | we commend the Illinois YouthBuild Coalition (IYC) for its | ||||||
| 8 | dedication to assisting the youth of Illinois, and we thank | ||||||
| 9 | IYC President Tameka Wilson, various staff members, and the | ||||||
| 10 | coalition's 18 state-wide directors for their continued | ||||||
| 11 | efforts and hard work; and be it further | ||||||
| 12 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 13 | presented to the Illinois Youth Coalition as a symbol of our | ||||||
| 14 | respect and esteem. | ||||||