History

Originally founded in 1983 as the Camden County Employment Consortium, The Work Group was born from a collaborative of 12 Camden County agencies experienced in meeting the needs of the hardest to serve.  Along with the name change of 1987, the mission was sharpened to address the education and developmental needs of at-risk youth through high-quality, work-centered activities. For the past 40 years, The Work Group has operated  the largest Youth Corps Program in New Jersey, having served over 4,000 young people.

We seek to address the needs and challenges faced by young people who have grown up in poverty and who have faced pervasive and systemic educational disadvantage.  Over 90% of our Youth Corps students attended school in Camden City, its students are by definition among the least prepared in the state.  Their lack of belief in the future is exacerbated by all of the problems associated with urban poverty:  inadequate housing and homelessness, unemployment, drug and alcohol abuse, violent crime, dysfunctional family life, negative peer groups, and so forth.  The Work Group focuses its attention on the education and employment of Camden’s young adults through high-quality, work-centered activities, believing that helping them become effective in the workplace is the clearest path to economic self sufficiency.