(Albany, GA) The Turner Job Corps Center will join the 125 Job Corps centers across the country to celebrate the second annual “National Job Corps Commencement Day” ceremony August 24th to congratulate the Job Corps students who showed Job Corps Works by completing the program this year. This year’s Commencement speaker will be Congressman Sanford Bishop Jr.

Recent Job Corps graduates employed in Georgia, employer partners, local policymakers, community leaders, family members and many more will recognize these students’ achievements and the investment they made in their futures and our community.

The Turner Job Corps Center is one of 125 Job Corps centers located across the country and in all 50 states. A unique national program, Job Corps offers at-risk youth a set of diverse academic opportunities and career pathways tailored to meet the needs of business and industry. Each year, Job Corps gives 60,000 youth a second chance to complete their education and advance into careers, higher education or the military.

Mark Shriver, author of A Good Man: Rediscovering My Father, Sargent Shriver, will serve as the national keynote speaker for the event in Washington D.C. Shriver, the son of Job Corps founder Sargent Shriver, will congratulated the 60,000 students who graduated from Job Corps this year.

“Job Corps is a great investment for the American people,” Shriver said in a special nationwide video address delivered in front of the United States Capitol. “Your commitment and dedication to get good-paying jobs make Job Corps the most successful federal training program serving your age group.”

Job Corps, the nation’s most effective career preparation program for at-risk youth, has been vital to the success of many young people with few options since it was founded almost 50 years ago, Shriver said.

“That’s why we need Job Corps for 50 MORE years – to continue helping young people like you who may not have the same opportunities others have had but are willing to work hard to overcome their obstacles,” he told the students.

Job Corps has served more than 3 million out-of-work young adults and underserved youth nationally. Many are high-school dropouts or public-assistance recipients, and Job Corps helps them become active contributors to their communities.

The average Job Corps center supports 228 local jobs and every dollar invested in Job Corps returns almost $2 to the local economy. Nationally, the 125 Job Corps centers support about 30,000 jobs, the vast majority of which are with private businesses.

Shriver ended his video address by passing along advice from his father and Job Corps founder Sargent Shriver: “Just keep working hard. Something good will happen.”