Trump’s Cuts Thrust San Diego Students into Chaos and Homelessness

President Donald Trump’s sweeping cuts to government programs have thrown the fates of roughly 300 young people living at the Job Corps center in Imperial Beach into chaos.  

More than 200 people living at the center left within days of the news that it would close. It’s unclear where all of those who departed went. By the end of last week, less than 100 of the 300 students who had been staying there remained at the facility. 

Job Corps dates back more than 60 years and offers academic training, support services and free housing to low-income youth. Many living at the center came from dysfunctional and abusive home situations. Some also have disabilities. 

Federal officials abruptly announced on Thursday, May 29, that they planned to close all Job Corps centers across the country run by private contractors. The San Diego facility is managed by the Management and Training Corporation, a controversial private contractor that runs a slew of private prisons and immigration detention facilities. 

Of the students who remain at the facility, some have a safe place to go and others do not.  

Job Corps counselors, community organizations and county officials have been working to find new homes for roughly 100 Job Corps residents. Of those, roughly 70 have secured a bed at a homeless shelter or other housing option.  

Roughly 30 still need a place to go, according to County Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe’s office.  

Brandon Cecil, a resident, was informed he needed to leave the center Friday, May 30. He said counselors told him he needed to be gone that same day. Cecil has been staying on a friend’s couch. 

“Students who don’t have a home might be forced to go back to domestic violence or unhealthy relationships,” Cecil said. “That’s partly what the center provided for us, an escape from those environments and an opportunity to be independent.”  

Department of Labor officials claimed they would initiate “an orderly transition for students, staff, and local communities,” according to the press release announcing the program’s shuttering. 

The closure has been anything but orderly. 

Job Corps center employees in Imperial Beach found out about the closure the same day as the announcement. They were initially given a week to shut the center down, employees told Voice of San Diego. 

Now, a court injunction has temporarily halted Trump’s plan to close Job Corps facilities across the country. A judge will decide in coming weeks if Trump’s Department of Labor has the power to shut down the program, which was congressionally approved. A hearing is set for June 17. 

Job Corps has long been a target for Republicans. One of Trump’s previous labor secretaries said the program needs “fundamental reform.” An inspector general report found Job Corps hadn’t demonstrated beneficial job training and a Government Accountability Office report found widespread security concerns at sites. 

But for some students, it’s been an invaluable lifeline. Trump’s decision to cut the program was met with significant pushback by both Democratic and Republican elected officials. A recent open letter signed by more than 200 U.S. House members included the signatures of most San Diego representatives. 

Like many students at the center, the announcement that Job Corps could close threw Cecil’s life into disarray. He graduated from Job Corps last year, but was taking advantage of two additional years of free housing, which the program offers graduates pursuing a college degree.  

Cecil was working on a psychology degree at Southwestern College. 

“I was learning to make proper adult decisions and able to go to college without worrying about housing,” he said. 

It’s not entirely clear where others like Cecil have gone.  

One of Cecil’s friends is considering taking a bus to live with her grandmother in Texas.  

Local organizations have been scrambling to find places for displaced youth. The Housing Our Youth collaborative – which is a partnership between local nonprofits like Urban Street Angels, the San Diego LGBT Community Center, the YMCA, South Bay Community Services, San Diego Youth Services and Home Start – set aside dozens of beds for the displaced Job Corps students.  

Those beds are essential to the stability of the young people displaced from Job Corps, but they likely mean shelter will be more difficult for other youth in the region to find in coming weeks. 

County workers have also been on site, trying to connect people with resources. Montgomery Steppe’s office has taken an active role.  

“All I needed to hear was that they were in need and had a commitment from the federal government that had been snatched away from them,” Montgomery Steppe said. “We’re doing our best to make sure they receive housing and all the resources they need.”  

The situation has been in constant flux.  

A week after the closure announcement, some Job Corps residents – like Cecil – have been told they can come back.  

“I feel like, dang, I might have left too early. But then I was told to leave early, and so I followed that direction,” Cecil said. “There are a lot of big miscommunications, big judgment calls that now … are affecting students.” 

Wendell Curtis, a career counselor at Job Corps, agreed.  

“The constantly changing directives have pushed students to make choices they may not have made if they were arranging a normal transition out of the program,” Curtis said. “Students have had to make quick decisions that they may regret as the situation develops and more options are presented.” 

Cecil said Job Corps has played an important role in his life. It’s not perfect, but it’s provided him valuable support through free housing and counseling. 

“You get a roof over your head, you get three meals a day that’s not paid for by you. You’re getting free education, free certificates, things like that. That’s where the program is shining,” Cecil said.