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STATE OF CONNECTICUT EXECUTIVE CHAMBERS HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT 06106 |
M. Jodi Rell Governor |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 14, 2010
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Contact: 860-524-7313
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Governor Rell: Stimulus Funds Helping Provide
Summer Employment for Young Workers
Celebration of Second Year of Youth Workers of
Connecticut Conservation Corps (CCC)
Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that the state is once again using federal stimulus funds for employment programs for dozens of teenagers and young adults working outdoors on a variety of state park improvement projects.
“We are able to build on the success of last year’s Youth Connecticut Conservation Corps by bringing the program around again this summer. Young workers truly make a difference at our state parks by developing the valuable skills of teamwork, leadership and decision-making,” Governor Rell said.
Funding for the Youth CCC, designed for workers ages 17-24 years, is from $34 million in federal dollars the state received for its Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) fund. The funds help families in need with housing, utility payments, short-term employment and other basic assistance.
The Governor said TANF funds are also being used to support a summer work/study program for New Britain high school students. Over the next seven weeks, about 30 students, ages 16-19, will get paid to work with the state Department of Environmental Protection on various projects.
“Both of these programs provide tremendous opportunity for young men and women to learn about careers in environmental and outdoor recreation fields,” Governor Rell said during a visit today with the New Britain students. “Getting outdoors, learning about nature, learning about what it takes to tackle a project as a team and get it done is valuable hands-on experience that will serve them well their whole lives.”
Work projects this summer include removing of invasive species, building boardwalks, painting historic buildings and making additional improvements that benefit visitors to outdoor recreation areas.
The Governor pointed out the work done by both crews does not replace work tasks by DEP employees but complements them, allowing state workers to focus on other immediate needs.
Youth Workers of Connecticut Conservation Corps
Students from eastern Connecticut, including Willimantic and Danielson, began work this week and will be working at Harkness Memorial State Park in Waterford to repaint an historic barn and at Rocky Neck State Park in East Lyme to build a boardwalk. Other jobs will be determined as needed in Connecticut State Parks and Forests.
Work/Study Program at New Britain High School
Students from New Britain High School are working at six state parks and forests removing invasive plant species of concern to Connecticut’s environment. Their locations include: Quinnipiac River State Park, North Haven; Osbornedale State Park, Derby; Goodwin Forest, Hampton; Peoples and American Legion State Forests, Barkhamsted; and Hammonasset Beach State Park, Madison.
History of the CCC in Connecticut
Throughout the 1930s and ’40s, there were 22 CCC camps in Connecticut, with about 200 to 250 young men living at each. Participants went to work in what were then largely undeveloped state parks.
Workers built trails, roads, fire towers and picnic shelters and planted trees in many parks. Some of the specific projects included building dams that created swimming areas at Chatfield Hollow State Park, Killingworth and Pachaug State Forest, Voluntown; clearing the recreation area for Squantz Pond, New Fairfield; improvements to Hammonasset Beach State Park, Madison; and the construction of the forest rangers’ homes at Shenipsit, Chatfield Hollow, Pachaug and Tunxis state parks.
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