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PORTLAND, Ore. � The U.S. Department of Labor has announced it will
pause operations at all contractor-run Job Corps centers across the
country by June 30 � including Oregon's Tongue Point center in
Astoria and Springdale center in Troutdale, along with its downtown
Portland satellite campus.

The decision comes amid financial concerns and criticism over the
federal program�s effectiveness. But students and staff at Tongue
Point said the move could leave hundreds of young people without
support, housing or a clear path forward.

Jessica Ericta, the deputy director at Tongue Point, started at the
center more than 25 years ago as a 16-year-old fleeing a troubled
home life. She said the program made a big difference for her
trajectory.

"It really changed my life," she said. "It helped me feel like I do
matter in this world."

Now she�s worried for the more than 300 students currently
enrolled. A handful have already left, including about 20 who were
on track to graduate in August.

"We have a large handful of students who have zero places to go,"
Ericta said. "No family to support them. I'm at a loss at what do
we do."

The Department of Labor said the pause is necessary after the
program operated at a $140 million deficit in program year 2024,
with a projected $213 million shortfall in 2025. A recent
transparency report showed a 38.6% graduation rate, a cost of over
$80,000 per student per year, and more than 14,000 serious incident
reports nationwide.

But Ericta says those numbers don�t reflect the realities on the
ground.

�Our materials are outdated; we can't afford certain things," she
said. "Our budgets are so limited and so small, but we do the very,
very best to focus on employability skills."

Senator Ron Wyden condemned the decision, calling on Labor
Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer to reconsider.

"Job Corps serves some of the most vulnerable young people in our
country," Wyden said. "We are demanding answers on how rural and
underserved communities... will be affected by these closures."

RELATED: Trump moves to end Digital Equity Act, a program to boost
computer skills and access in rural areas

Chavez-DeRemer, who previously championed Job Corps as a member of
Congress, said the administration wants to refocus the program to
ensure outcomes justify its $1.7 billion annual cost.

Despite her own future being uncertain, Ericta says she's more
worried about the students.

"It's devastating that everyone here is having to experience this,"
she said. "It just feels like it's being ripped out from underneath
us."

Much of the Job Corps website appears to have been taken offline;
the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine shows the site's homepage
was still accessible as recently as Thursday, but as of Friday
visitors are automatically redirected to a page titled "Beyond Job
Corps" with links to a series of other career-building tools and
resources.

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