OAS supports Generation Hope with Career Readiness

One of Objective Area Solution’s core values is “Service to Others.” Our team is committed to contributing to the community because we all flourish when we all have the opportunity to succeed. We all have gotten to where we are today because of people who have helped us develop our skills and discover our passions. We believe it is our role to help pay it forward.

Over the past few months, our team has been proud to partner with Generation Hope, an innovative nonprofit that helps DC-area teen parents earn college degrees while at the same time helping their children get ready for kindergarten. Our CEO, J.J. Stakem, had the opportunity to meet Generation Hope’s Founder and CEO, Nicole Lynn Lewis, while speaking on a panel at George Mason University. He was inspired by her personal story of being a teen mother who defied the odds to earn her college degree and founded Generation Hope to help other young families thrive, and he was impressed by Generation Hope’s high-impact two-generation model.

Fewer than 2% of teen mothers earn a college degree before age 30, but Generation Hope Scholars graduate at a rate that exceeds the national average for ALL college students and is almost eight times the rate of single mothers nationwide. Their Scholars’ post-graduation employment rate is ten percentage points higher than the average for ALL graduates in the region, and 92% of their Scholars are living above the poverty line within six months of graduation.

Objective Area Solutions has supported Generation Hope’s career readiness programming, which helps Generation Hope Scholars not only earn degrees but also secure jobs with family-sustaining wages. We’ve been proud to help review Scholars’ resumes, cover letters, and LinkedIn pages, and provide feedback that will help as they search for jobs and internships. Our team also contributed tangible items - like children’s books and grocery gift cards - to help lessen the financial burden that many families are experiencing.

Our engagement with Generation Hope has been a reminder that giving back makes a difference for the community AND our company. For example, it offers an opportunity to build employment pipelines for young talent so that we can ensure that our team and industry can have a strong workforce for the future. Furthermore, it gives employees the opportunity to connect with each other, especially at a time when it is easy to feel disconnected.

We look forward to working with Generation Hope and other high-impact nonprofits in the region and building this spirit of service into the DNA of OAS.

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