In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson laid out his plan for the Great Society. His vision for America was one in which all segments of society could participate equally. To this end, the Economic Opportunity Act, which created Job Corps, was passed. The Job Corps program provides economically disadvantaged youth, ages 16-24, with the academic, vocational, and social skills needed to pursue long-term, productive careers at 124 Job Corps Centers nationwide. Among these, 28 Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers (JCCCCs) are operated on public lands under an interagency agreement between the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service. Dating back to the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) of the 1930s, the Forest Service has a history of involvement with employment programs with a rich legacy of land stewardship. The Forest Service, which played a principle role in establishing and operating the depression era CCC, took a central role in designing the Job Corps program. JCCCCs are associated with national forests or grasslands and they span seven Forest Service regions, 22 national forests and grasslands and 18 states with a capacity to house, educate, and train over 6,200 enrollees. JCCCCs have a unique conservation mission and provide academic education and practical training in work-based learning to conserve, develop and manage, and enhance public natural resources and recreation areas, or to develop community projects in the public interest. The talents of JCCCC students are enlisted in a diverse array of Forest Service programs, although they are most widely known for their program contributions in urban forestry, hazardous fuels reduction, construction, and firefighting. Approximately 80% of all Job Corps students obtain jobs, enlist in the military, or go on to further education. JCCCCs conserve and develop human resources as well as the nation's abundant natural resources. Forest Service Job Corps is a flagship program in the agency's mission of "Caring for the Land and Serving People."
