Mission:
To change how employers perceive underserved youth with atypical resumes and connect leading companies to prospective employees through various employment pathways.

Background:
Launched by the Employment Pathways Project in partnership with Year Up and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Grads of Life campaign seeks to increase employer demand for so-called opportunity youth — a historically overlooked talent pool — by providing employers with the information and tools they need to develop new sources of skilled workers. The project also is supported by the Annie E. Casey, Gap, JPMorgan Chase, and Rockefeller foundations; AOL; and Patty Stonesifer and Michael Kinsley.

Outstanding Web Features:
Visitors to the site can learn about the benefits of investing in employment pathways and opportunity youth — including cost-effective talent acquisition, increased retention, higher productivity, workforce diversity, and enhanced employee engagement; download toolkits for creating internship, mentoring, school-to-work, and hiring programs targeting opportunity youth, as well as additional resources; or browse success stories of companies that developed programs for opportunity youth and improved the effectiveness of their workforce. Companies also can explore how working with a partner organization provides additional support, how to choose a partner, and/or search for a partner organization by zip code.