Welcome To South Carolina
Our programs and projects in South Carolina are targeted to several groups, including farmworkers and other low-income residents, children and youth, and non- custodial fathers.
Under section 167 of the Workforce Investment Act, Telamon-South Carolina sponsors the National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP). Targeted for services are farmworkers, and their dependents, who seek assistance in stabilizing agricultural employment or in upgrading their educational and job skills in preparation for non-farm work. In addition to supportive services, we offer opportunities to attain school or occupational credentials that increase one's labor market potential. Through agreements with training institutions, private employers and other community resource partners, qualifying program participants can work toward and achieve their employment objectives. See Eligibility Criteria.
As required partners in the system of service delivery under the Workforce Investment Act, all of our staff representatives are active participants in their respective area One-Stop Centers.
Our Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) project provides free books to children of migrant farmworkers who come to work in South Carolina's fields. The program emphasizes good reading material appropriate for cultural characteristics, reading level, and the interests of all children. Distribution of the books to the children is assisted by many organizations and groups each summer. Migrant children age 3 through high school are eligible to select books to own.
A farmworker youth program, focusing on dropout prevention and completion of high school, offers an array of services toward those objectives. Counseling, career planning, tutorial help and adult mentors are important parts of this project. Participants can learn job and life skills, participate in community projects and broaden their cultural horizons. see Eligibility Criteria.
In conjunction with the Florida Department of Education, Rural Opportunities, Inc., and other programs, Telamon operates a program called S.A.V.E. ,(Seeing Alternatives and Valuing Education). Targeted to children of Florida-based migrant farmworkers, the programs objectives combine school retention with child labor reduction activities. Essentially, qualifying youth can be compensated for their participation in learning activities as an alternative to farm labor. A key element of the project is coordination with participants' Florida schools to ensure continuity of support and encouragement of their high school completion. See Eligibility Criteria.
Another youth project, the Youth Employment Task Force, is cosponsored by the United Way of the Midlands, based in the Spartanburg area. This program is set to empower in/out of school and unemployed youth (ages 16-22) through employment and placement services. To be eligible, the youth participants must be from low-income families and residents of Spartanburg County. Youth are exposed to occupation opportunities as well as pre-employment classes, and undergo career interest assessments. The ultimate goal is to influence youth to stay in school or return to an educational setting.
Our Housing programs reach out to various target populations. Currently included are:
The Hearth Corporation, created in 1991 by Telamon, is a Community Housing Development Organization that works with Telamon to assist low and moderate income residents of South Carolina to qualify for and acquire new homes through low-interest loans. Hearth targets housing acquisition to twelve or more families each year, and in 1999 received HUD's John J. Gunter award as the state's most effective service project. The participating families must reside in South Carolina with the exception of Richland Couonty. More specific information is available through Marie Ross, Project Director, at 843/676-1055 in Florence, South Carolina.
The Housing Rehabilitation project began in 1986 and has grown to become a comprehensive service in the eastern or PeeDee area of the state, a region that contains some of the poorest rural communities of South Carolina. This low- income oriented program is supported by funds from USDA, Rural Development's (formerly Farmer's Home Administration's) 502/504 loans or grants, and a Housing Preservation Grant (HPG). It also attracts funding support from: the Enterprise Community of Williamsburg County/Lake City, CDBG (Community Development Block Grants), the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund, the City of Florence, "Ramps and Rails' for Disabled Persons, and home safety for senior citizens. Eligible family must be headed by a senior citizen, meet low-incom criteria and reside in the Enterprise Community of Williamsburg County/Lake City.
A housing supplement through the Department of Labor helps to ensure that all other housing projects will assist low-income migrant and seasonal farmworkers in South Carolina. Each Year, we conduct a workshop for farmworkers and their families on opportunities for home-ownership, weatherization, rehabilitation and other housing services in the region. The emphasis is on providing a farmworker- friendly explanation of programs both federal and local in nature. The workshop is organized and provided by the Florence office.
The Fatherhood Engagement program, funded by the Sisters of Charity Foundation, provides parenting training from a male perspective, construction skills instruction, academic support and job placement assistance to young men who struggle with having become fathers. Eligible males must be ages 18 through 28, non-custodial parents, low-income individuals, and residents of Florence or Marion County, South Carolina. With an emphasis on spiritual growth, the Fatherhood Project is a holistic and sensitive approach to the needs of an often- overlooked population. More information is available through Robert Williams, Project Director, at 843/676-1055.
Youthbuild is a program for low-income, young adults who have left high school prior to graduation and experience difficulty obtaining meaningful employment. The Department of Housing and Urban Development funds the project, which targets eligible youth who are residents of South Carolina's Enterprise Community of Williamsburg County/Lake City. Emphasizing youth empowerment, the project provides support in the form of construction skills training, academic tutoring and job placement assistance. Participants must be 18 to 24 years of age and residents of the Enterprise Community of Williamsburg County/Lake City, South Carolina. More information is available through Wayne Rogers, Project Director, at 843/354-5708.
An Entrepreneurship Project, funded through a Rural Business Enterprise grant, offers business start-up training for migrant and seasonal farmworkers and other low-income persons in the Upstate area, including greater Spartanburg County. Through a business development trainer, the project provides: (1) thirty hours of business creation training, (2) micro-loans at a maximum of $5,000 for new businesses or business growth that will create a least one new job and (3) twenty hours of follow-up counseling for each new business venture. The Telamon micro-loans require no collateral, no interest and no credit history criteria. An independent Telamon Loan Committee composed of entrepreneurship educators and lenders reviews all applications and determines specific loan payback requirements.
All business training is geared toward real world needs for marketing one’s services or products, bookkeeping and business goal-keeping. Interested persons should contact: Noy Boriboune, kboriboune@telamon.org at Telamon-Spartanburg, telephone number: 864-582-5611.