Youth Eligibility Requirements

General Youth Eligibility Requirements

All potential enrollees must document work authorization, age, and selective service registration. All Work Experience participants must all provide social security documentation.

Youth Program Eligibility Requirements

In-School Youth Definition:
An In-School Youth is defined as an eligible youth who is attending and/or enrolled in school, either secondary or post-secondary.

In-School Youth Eligibility Requirements:

• In School Youth must meet all the below criteria:
• General Eligibility Established AND
• Between the ages of 14 and 21 (WF1 Priority 16 to 21) AND
• Attending school (Secondary or Post-Secondary) AND
• Family Low income (Free and Reduce Lunch) AND
• One of the following options:
  • Basic skills deficient
  • An English language learner
  • Offender
  • A homeless individual, homeless child or youth
  • A runaway
  • In foster care or has aged out of the foster care system
  • A child eligible for assistance under Section 477 of the Social Security Act (DCF - Foster Care Education Program)
  • An out of home placement
  • Pregnant or Parenting
  • Individual with a disability
  • Individual who requires additional assistance to complete an educational program or to secure and hold employment

Out-of-School Youth Definition:

An out-of-school youth is defined as an eligible youth who is a school dropout (and does not attend an alternative school or has not received a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent); or is an eligible youth who has either graduated from high school or holds a GED, but is basic skills deficient, unemployed, or underemployed.

Please note: If a youth is attending an alternative school at the time of enrollment, the youth does not meet the requirement for "out-of-school" youth. However, once a youth is determined eligible as an "out-of-school" youth and enrolled in the program, he/she can then attend an alternative school or receive alternative school services and it will not disqualify them as an "out-of-school" youth.

Out-of-School Youth Eligibility Requirements:

• Out of School Youth must meet all the below criteria:
• General Eligibility Established AND
• Between the ages of 16 and 24 AND
• Not attending any school (does not consider Adult Education / Job Corps attendance as in-school) AND
• One of the following options:
  • School dropout
  • A youth who is within the age of compulsory school attendance, but has not attended school for at least the most recent complete school year calendar quarter
  • An individual who is subject to the juvenile or adult justice system
  • A homeless individual, homeless child, or youth
  • A runaway
  • In foster care or has aged out of the foster care system
  • A child eligible for assistance under Section 477 of the Social Security Act
  • An out of home placement
  • Pregnant or Parenting
  • Individual with a disability
  • Recipient of a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent and is low income and basic skills deficient or an English language learner
  • Low income individual who requires additional assistance to enter or complete an educational program or to secure and hold employment.
  • For OSY, only those youth who are the recipient of a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent and are either basic skills deficient or an English language learner and youth who require additional assistance to enter or complete an educational program or to secure or hold employment must be low-income. OSY Low Income – POVERTY LEVELS
  • For OSY who are subject to the justice system, homeless, pregnant or parenting, or have a disability, income eligibility documentation is not required by statute.