ABOUT BUILDING HORIZONS

Mission Statement about
To create and expand career development, job training and employment opportunities for youth and the unemployed in the Eastern Riverside County.

The mission of Building Horizons is to provide a work based learning environment for high school age youth, create entry level job opportunities for graduates, support their efforts to secure a higher education, and give them hope for their future -- all of this on a self-supporting basis.

History
In the Fall of 1994, the Boys and Girls Club of Coachella Valley launched an experimental program called Building Horizons. The impetus to start the program came from a need to provide vocational training to local youth. It was hoped that such a program would provide a work environment in which youth could mature while facing real-world work situations as they explored possible career paths.

The program was built on the premise that after an initial influx of start-up money it would be self supporting through the sale of the affordable homes built by the students, while simultaneously partnering with the public and private sectors to assist with donations of building materials and labor to off-set the costs of construction; cash donations; grants; city participation in the form of no-interest loans or donations of property; and school participation through transportation and the waiver of school fees.

The success of the program can be largely attributed to the working relationship established with the La Quinta Redevelopment Agency who assisted with no-interest construction loans to build our first nine homes in the City of La Quinta, CA. The agreement between the La Quinta Redevelopment Agency and Building Horizons has been utilized as a template for the various local cities in which we have built homes over the past several years.

This cooperation has created a win-win scenario for the participants. The schools benefit by having a highly visible vocational education program with minimal cost. The building industry receives a more qualified work force, the cities get much needed affordable housing, and the students receive valuable work experience, up to 30 credits toward graduation, jobs in the building industry and/or scholarships for continuing their education.