- When we ring a bell, it means that somebody got the job.
- This is not a party.
This is work.
- I'll tell you what, we're not a normal job shop.
- Cara Chicago has cracked the code
for stopping chronic unemployment.
- I think that the Cara model works
because we go after the whole person
to focus on the new you.
- Their job retention rates are 20 points higher
than the national average.
And so the big question is
can they spread their solution across the country,
and change the way we tackle poverty?
(chanting)
Every morning, Cara starts the day with a ritual
they call - Motivations.
- My name is Mikel!
- [Crowd] Hey, Mikel.
(chanting)
- Sometimes you have to get up in front of people,
do the thing that you're scared to death to do,
speaking in public and sure as hell singing.
♪ Ain't no mountain high enough ♪
Oftentimes what happens with people
that are experiencing chronic homelessness and poverty,
you lose your sense of community, your family.
And so to be in a place where people are loving up on you,
and getting fired up by that, like,
that is what we want for the individuals we serve.
We look at who they are as people before
who they might become as professionals.
That's the magic of Cara right there.
Our goal here is to make sure that individuals don't just
get jobs, but keep them for the longterm,
and give them all the support they need to do just that.
(cheering)
We realize the skills in a classroom
is only one dimension of readiness for work.
- Another thing that sets Cara apart
from other programs is that they've built
for profit businesses that employ individuals
in transitional jobs before they place them
in more permanent ones.
- We realized that was the missing ingredient.
Right now, at this point in our journey,
we're at a thousand jobs per year.
And then once people are placed,
we stay with them for at least the first year of employment,
but then for years beyond.
- And their one year retention rate is 70%.
That's 20 points higher than the national average.
- Our method is working here in Chicago.
We have this solution that we're sitting on,
and if there's a way we could share it,
so more Americans can get back to employment,
then we absolutely should.
And then something magical happened.
We found a place that understood that it
was doing everything but the jobs piece.
(airplane flying)
(chill music)
So I can't stop smiling thinking about this
because Atlanta Mission brings me great joy.
Like, I love the team down there.
They're helping the same population,
but they're just not helping to
mobilize them into employment.
- We're investing heavily on emotional, social, spiritual,
physical side, but they need a job.
- So with them, we're sharing our method
so that they can activate workforce solutions,
right in their own hometown.
- I think one of the biggest things that our people face,
they'll say this, I failed so many times.
It's easier to not try than to fail again.
And so sometimes you've got to believe in somebody
more than they believe in themselves
to get them to take that first step.
I think one of the biggest things Cara does is it breathes
we believe you can do this.
And a job is a huge way to do that.
And so the ability through this to give them
a hope and a belief they could be more is enormous.
- What time is it?
- [Crowd] Transformation time.
- Cut that ribbon!
- [Crowd] Cut that ribbon, cut that ribbon!
(cheering)
- Because of this partnership,
Cara's model will impact thousands
more people experiencing poverty in Atlanta.
- We believe that we're more locksmiths than trainers.
What I mean by that is that everybody coming to us
all ready has these amazing strengths
and skills within them.
Our job is just to unlock it.
People believe that poverty is a choice,
and that's just not what we see.
We see people, moms and dads,
and leaders in their own right
that are coming to us saying, I want to get back to work.
I just lack the access and opportunity to do it.
And the more we can do as a society
to help people with the grit and the tenacity
to reenter the workforce, the better off
we're going to be to have a real shot
at stopping that transfer of poverty to the next generation.
Our vision is to fuel a courageous national movement
to eradicate relational and financial poverty.
I believe that Cara can do that.
- Thanks for watching. Cara's unique model
is transforming lives through lasting employment.
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