Next Step Center
in the NEWS
| New Marching Orders Jobless military veterans finding part-time work at tech firms It's hard enough hiring high-priced engineers in Silicon Valley's tight job market. Try finding workers for blue-collar jobs that don't pay much and usually are temporary. But database-maker Oracle Corp. and a handful of other Silicon Valley firms have found an inventive solution by casting their nets beyond the usual pool of high- tech workers. No newly minted engineers here, and nobody who's heard the headhunter's call. Instead, Oracle has put a group of unemployed military veterans to work -- and reaped some surprising benefits. At Oracle's distribution plant in Belmont, more than 25 veterans work by packing, sorting and shipping Oracle software to customers all over the world. ``We used to hire people right out of college. There was a high turnover, and when people left, the jobs were hard to fill,'' said Brian Ernst, who manages Oracle's manufacturing organization. ``The big change is that we have people here who want to be here.'' The veterans all come through Next Step, a Menlo Park nonprofit affiliated with the U.S. Veterans Administration. Next Step is the primary job-placement and training agency for military veterans in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. Click Here to read the rest of this article |
Next Step
Center/ Veterans Workshop
Participants Receive Special Awards
Mathew Becker was honored at the Sacramento Convention Center on August 25th when he received the Governor’s Portrait of Success Award and on August 27th when he received the San Mateo County JTPA Superstar Award. Robert Rambonga received a Special Achievement Award at the NOVA Private Industry Council Awards Luncheon on August 26th.
With histories of drug abuse that eventually led to homelessness, divorce, and severe criminal records, Becker and Rambonga came to the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System (VAPAHCS) and Next Step Center for support with reintegration into society and where they received comprehensive vocational rehabilitation services. While supported with drug rehabilitation services at the Homeless Veterans Rehabilitation program, they received employment services at Next Step Center including assessment, vocational counseling, job skills training, placement assistance and transitional housing.
Becker became the House Manager at one of Next Step Center’s transitional houses and has plans to study hotel management at Canada College. Rambonga is a Case Counselor at a community shelter. There he provides guidance, focus, and structure for shelter guests, many of them veterans. In overcoming multiple barriers, Becker and Rambonga are truly role models for veterans who need to turn their lives around.
The Next Step Center was instrumental in providing the necessary and appropriate climate for these veterans. Using a "whole person" approach to vocational rehabilitation, coupled with intensive case management, the Next Step Center has served over 6,500 veterans since its inception. In 1997, the agency placed over 450 veterans in a wide variety of positions throughout San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
The Next Step Center was founded in 1988 to augment the services provided by Veternas Workshop, Inc, for more than 30 years. Next Step survived the dissolvement of the Veterans Workshop, Inc. in 1999 and became a division of the Vietnam Veterans of California on Novermber 1, 1999. Next Step was the agency's fourth program site. Other sites are located in Eureka, Sacramento, and Santa Rosa, California. On May 1, 2000, Vietnam Veterans of California opened a fifth program site in Oakland, CA. The sites work in collaboration to provide an array of needed services to veterans.
Next Step Center is located at 795 Willow Road, Building 137, 2nd floor, Menlo Park, CA 94025. The center is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Veterans in need of help are welcome to come in during these hours.