Disorderly Conduct at Keystone Job Corps (2009)

From midnight to 5:30 AM police in Luzerne County were called to the Keystone Job Corps Center for disturbances at the center.  No arrests were made, but four students were charged with disorderly conduct.  Read the Article here from 16 WNEP the News Station:

Filed under: Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Keystone Job Corps Center, Newspaper Reports, disorderly conduct, Keystone Job Corps Center, Luzerne County

Reader’s Comments About Roy Adams and Shriver Job Corps Center

These are the responses a reader had about the post, Greed Never Takes a Holiday Meet Roy Adams of Adams and Associates:

-from Tim

“I’ll never forget the summer dress code memo Roy Adams sent out. There was a question on what was appropriate attire when the students were gone and the staff were attending required trainings, or clean-up work in preparation of the next round of student arrivals. Capri pants were forbidden for the women, although I previously worked in two Fortune 500 companies where they were allowed unless the employees were out in the field meeting customers or dealing with the general public. Ties were required year-round for the male employees, although the manager in the office next to mine never wore one, and seemed to get away with it. The memo ended with the statement “No tie, no job”. As if an additional clothing accessory in the heat of summer would lead to greater productivity or increased funding from Congress.

-from Tim

Another dress code situation at Shriver that wasn’t an issue but should have been was the summer attire of one of the program directors. She had this yellow baby-doll pajama outfit that she called a “sun dress” that had a hemline that practically reached her hip line! She neither had the body stature nor figure for an outfit like this, but she strutted around like a supermodel and appeared to enjoy the attention. This resulted in a lot of remarks by other staff members as to the definition of what was acceptable in the workplace. The male students had previously nicknamed her “Milkshake” after the song by Kelis Jones, so it’s a good thing that she had the sense not to wear this when school was actually in session. The center director saw absolutely nothing wrong with wearing an outfit like this, yet the men would be chastised if they did not wear a tie when it was 90 degrees in the shade and none of the students were present. I was lucky enough to have an office in one of the few air-conditioned buildings, but it was still difficult to do the required clean-up work in preparation for the next school session if you felt like you had a noose around your neck.

This same center director put another program director on a 90 day corrective action plan without telling Human Resources. This meant that the monthly HR reports I had to send to the regional corporate office were incorrect for three months in a row. After I left, she fired yet another program director who was able to appeal her termination to the corporate office and get her job back. This is the only incident I was aware of in two years of employment where a termination decision actually got overturned. With the exception of this and a high level director who had been fired shortly after 11 years of employment, all of the center director’s direct reports were puppets. The only managerial authority she allowed them would be to take their word as gospel if a situation arose where mediation or objectivity could have been offered by a second party to make a fair and rational decision.

My final dialogue with the center director involved a situation where it was my word against one of her direct reports. When she indicated that I could have met with her privately to discuss the problem before it escalated, I didn’t even respond. I knew it would have been pointless. The decision was already made seconds after the incident happened.

On my last day I participated in the quarterly new hire orientation program. It was held in my office. The center director gave her required welcoming introduction to the new employees, gave a brief but thorough history of Adams and Associates, and explained all policies and procedures, including the Job Corps mission of preparing students for and assisting them in finding jobs in the workplace. When one of the new hires stated that the present economy was so bad that there were no jobs out there and that college graduates were currently having difficulty finding employment, she abruptly replied “I don’t want to hear that!”

Their priorities are screwed up beyond repair. It’s a shame, because the Job Corps program was founded with the best intentions. It’s the contractors who are damaging it.

Filed under: Adams and Associates, Comments, Contractors, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Shriver Job Corps Center, Adams and Associates, dress code, Job Corps, Readers comments, Roy Adams, Shriver Job Corps Center

Chicopee Residents Complain Aboout Westover Job Corps Center (2009)

Read the story from Mass Live.com here:

In response to Chicopee resident complaints Mayor Michael D. Bissonette requested the center impose an 8:00 PM curfew.

Some of the complaints about the students are:

“Reports by residents of vandalism and harassment in the Fairview neighborhood by some Job Corps students were aired earlier this week at a neighborhood meeting.”

“We can’t have them being out at all hours disrupting the neighborhood and causing vandalism in the park,”

“They’re (the Chicopee residents) being intimidated and harassed and sometimes threatened,”

“There have been reports of car break-ins in the neighborhoods. Broken bottles, graffiti, and drug paraphernalia have been found at Preston Park, located on Access Road off James Street. Residents have complained of being harassed by Job Corps students there.”

Westover Job Corps Center is managed by Management and Training Corporation

Filed under: Contractors, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Management and Training Corporation, Newspaper Reports, Westover Job Corps Center, complaints, curfew, Management and Training Corporation, Mayor Michael D. Bissonette, Westover Job Corps

More about Little Rock Job Corps and Adams and Associates from Insiders

-from Devastated Future

I just finished reading the OIG Report from several of Adams and Associates Job Corps Audit findings. I couldn’t help but think I was reading about the Little Rock Job Corps Center. Those same things are happening at the Little Rock Job Corps Center. I just recently stopped working at the Little Rock Center. I only worked there a very short time. I knew that this wasn’t a stable place of employment. There were very few happy employees. Most people were very unhappy, beaten down, very down depressed people. The youth had no concept of the real world. Most of the staff had been disregarded. Students knew they could lie on staff and get away with it. I have not ever seen anything like this before. It took me only a short time to realize that I couldn’t do this. There is a lot of very wrong things going on here at this facility as well. I don’t know why this center hasn’t been investigated as well. If this is happening at 4 other centers what are the chances that this same behavior is going on at all of their other centers. Well I can say that the same thing is happening here as well. Does anyone not truly care about the future of these disadvantaged youth. Once again they are being taken advantaged of and disadvantaged. They are not receiving the education and care that should be awarded to them from the hard working taxpayers. Will someone hear and act truly on behalf of the youth. They can’t read and write and they are not learning to read and write. What a devastated future they face and so do we.

from Job Corps Fraud

I couldn’t believe it when I worked for Shriver Job Corps under Adams and Associates… it felt like being in a Twighlight Zone movie… and we, the taxpayers are funding this outrage at 1.7 billion dollars a year! But, through a sophisticated system of media manipulation and fear and intimidation it is all a well-kept secret. Thanks for writing.

-from A

All I can say is corrupt Corrupt corrupt. Job Corps is a corrupt way for hard working people to be ripped off under the pretense of helping disadvantaged youth. I have seen first hand just how much helping the disadvantaged youth is being down. That is nothing much is being done that will help them in the long run to secure them a future for employment or any other skilled profession. These youth are being taken advantage of and they don’t even know it the taxpayer doesn’t realize it yet. However in a few years we will all look back on this and view it as the rip off such as the banking industry. They are being used and are getting nothing in return. These contractors are not providing any specialized care or bringing in any professionals to help these youth with their learning disabilities. The Contractors Adams and Associates say they don’t pay for any outside programs. They want to portray themselves to be a non profit organization in order to receive free services from other organizations. Still nothing is being done for the welfare of the disadvantaged youth. They come into the program not being able to do basic Math and Reading and they leave the program not being able to do basic Reading and Math. Check it out especially in the Little Rock area. The youth can’t get employment because they can’t pass the entrance exams. Now who is at fault here for this. They simply are not being taught they need specialized care that you can’t get free in most instances.

-from Job Corps Fraud

I saw the same at Shriver. I wondered, and still do, what makes good people stay and work for a corrupt company? It is fear and manipulation. The employees are beaten down to believe they are worthless and the kids are just numbers to represent the $75 per day Adams and Associates and other greedy contractors receive for housing each student in sub-standard educational systems. Thanks for writing.

Filed under: Adams and Associates, Contractors, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Little Rock Job Corps, OIG Reports, Reader's Comments, Adams and Associates, Audit, fear and manipulation, Little Rock Job Corps, OIG

Jacksonville and Earle C. Clements Job Corps Centers and Accounting Audit Findings (OIG 2005)

From 2004 – 2005 the Office of the Inspector General performed an audit of 12 Job Corps Centers

WHY READ THE REPORT Read the report here: M.D. Oppenheim & Company, under contract to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, conducted a performance audit of Job Corps Center operating costs at 12 contractor operated Centers for the period October 2004 through March 2005. Center operating costs are reported monthly to the Office of Job Corps on Form ETA-2110, Job Corps Center Financial Report, and include direct Center expenses such as Center staff salaries, student food, student clothing, utilities, and medical expenses, as well as contractor fees and indirect general and administrative expenses. The audit was performed in conjunction with the audit of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Consolidated Financial Statements for Fiscal Year 2005.

there was a lack of adequate internal controls over program expenditures at the Earle C. Clements Job Corps Center;

there was improper recording and reporting of indirect administrative costs at the Jacksonville Job Corps Center; and

journal entries were not properly approved, adequately supported, or correctly recorded at five Job Corps Centers.

Instances of noncompliance such as these can result in overbilling to the government and an increased possibility of fraud through the manipulation of accounting records.

Jacksonville Job Corps is operated by Applied Technology Corporation and Earle C. Clements Job Corps is operated  by Management and /Training Corporation.

Filed under: applied Technology Corporation, Earle C. Clements Job Corps, Fraud, Jacksonville Job Corps Center, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Management and Training Corporation, OIG Reports, accounting audit, Earle C. Clements Job Corps, Jacksonville Job Corps Center, Job Corps Fraud, manipulation of numbers, Office of the Inspector General, OIG Reports

Management and Training Corporation and its Prison Cash Cow

Management and Training Corporation (MTC) really knows how to squeeze a buck and stretch a dollar on the backs of human misery.  Read about this Job Corps corporate conglomerate “Pig at the Trough” and how it runs its fee for service prisons.  While reading, remember, it operates the following Job Corps Centers where it’s supposed to provide a quality education to students and provide at least a decent wage to its employees:

Westover, Delaware Valley, Keystone, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Brunswick, Atlanta, Charleston, Cincinnati, Dayton, Earle C. Clements, Paul Simon Chicago, Denison, Flint Hills, Gary, Clearfield, Inland Empire, Sierra Nevada, Springdale Tongue Point, Cascades, Hawaii, Red Rock

Read MTC’s shameful prison history here:

Filed under: Atlanta Job Corps, Cascades Job Corps, Charleston Job Corps Center, Cincinnati Job Corps Center, Clearfield Utah Job Corps Center, Contractors, Dayton Job Corps, Deleware Valley Job corps, Dennison Job Corps, Earle C. Clements Job Corps, Employees, Flint Hills Job Corps, Gary Job Corps Center, Hawaii Job Corps, Inland Empire Job corps, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Keystone Job Corps Center, Management and Training Corporation, Maui Job Corps, Paul Simon Chicago Job corps, Philadelphia Job Corps, Pigs at the Trough... by Arianna Huffington, Red Rock Job Corps, Tulsa Job Corps Center, Westover Job Corps Center, Wilmington Job Corps Center, Atlanta Job Corps, Brunswick Job Corps, Cascades Job Corps, Charleston Job Corps, Cincinnati Job Corps, Clearfield Job Corps, Dayton Job Corps, Delaware Valley Job Corps, Denison Job Corps, Earle C. Clements Job Corps, fee for service prisons, Flint Hills Job Corps, Gary Job Corps, Hawaii Job Corps Center, human misery, Inland empire Job Corps Center, Job Corps, Keystone Job Corps Center, Management and Training Corporation, Paul Simon chicago Job Corps Center, Philadelphia Job Corps, Red Rock Job Corps, Sierra Nevada Job Corps Center, Springdale Tongue Point Job Corps, Westover Job Corps, Wilmington Job Corps Center

A Reader’s Opinion on Little Rock Job Corps Center and Adams and Associates

-from Perplexed

Sandra:

I totally disagree with you on the youth not knowing that Job Corps is an inferior program. The youth are well aware and very smart. Unfortunately they just can’t do any better and a lot of them do not have anywhere else to go. The facilities are improving considerably. For instance the Little Rock Job Corps Center is a top rated facility only 2 years old, modern everything.  However, the people at fault are the government contractors. They should be considered as the modern day Pimps. This contractor Adams and Associates Inc. is pimping the students, staff, and all taxpayers. Everyone should look into the operations of this contractor and its management style. Most of the Job Corps facilities are not run by the government but by private for profit contractors. That don’t care about the youth or the taxpayers hard earned dollars. The bottom line is they care about their bottom line. That is a great profit for them.  There is much fraud, waste, and abuse of students and staff. It is true, not much training or education is taking place at the Little Rock Center. Students graduate and yet not know how to read or write. Somehow they manage to become top students in their graduating class from this center. This happens because the center is ran on favoritism and the buddy system. Government Contractors are awarded on the least bid. Adams bid very low because they don’t pay their staff not paying your staff you have very high turnover. Therefore, you get a less quality program and people who may start out caring and doing the best they can will either leave, stop caring and doing least as possible until they can leave. Staff at this center is not appreciated so therefore it reflects in the high turnover.

I wish the government would take all Job Corps back over. This might bring a better quality to educating and truly help our disadvantage youth. The concept of Job Corps is great. I just wish that it would take the Pimping Contractors out of the centers.

Dear Perplexed, Please make sure to go to the tabs at the top of this page and click on “Search by Topic” look for Adams and Associates and also Shriver Job Corps Center. This ruthless contractor has had a lot of negative press on this website. Andrea from Job Corps Fraud…

Filed under: Adams and Associates, Contractors, Employees, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Little Rock Job Corps, Reader's Comments, Adams and Associates, high staff turnover, Job Corps contractors, Little Rock Job Corps Center

60 Gainsville Job Corps Students involved in small riot (2009)

This article from Gatorsports.com details an incident where 60 students were rioting at the Gainsville Job Corps Center. Minor injuries were incurred by some of the combatants, 7 individuals were sent to the hospital and 10 arrests were made.  13 police officers responded to the riot.

Listen to the minimization of the event by the Center’s Director, Conney Whitehead:

“…Unfortunately students at the center do have disagreements and fight…”

Make sure to read the article here:

Gainsville Job Corps is operated by Del-Jen.

Filed under: Arrests, DEL-JEN, Gainsville Job Corps, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Newspaper Reports, riot, arrest, Conney Whitehead, Gainsville, Gatersports.com, Job Corps

Office of the Inspector General’s Message from 1999

Nothing ever changes… look at the names in this report and the fraud OIG found from eleven years ago: Adams and Associates (employee alleges fraud) and National Plastering Industry’s Joint Apprenticeship Trust Fund ($996,242 in disallowed costs).

But we still keep granting them contracts despite their number inflation and manipulation of records. Read a few excerpts:

-from The Inspector General’s message page 12 regarding the Mississippi Job Corps Center owned by Adams and Associates

“Our review of 67 student records found that 28 student records (42 percent) were improperly altered, inaccurate, or incomplete. Consequently, the number of students the Center reported as “vocational completers” was inflated and students were improperly paid training completion bonuses. Further, the altered records gave false assurances that the affected students received vocational training.”

-from the Semi-Annual Report to Congress page 57 about the National Plastering Industry’s Joint Apprenticeship Trust Fund

The OIG questioned a total of $996,242 of direct costs claimed by the trust fund and the grant officer disallowed all of these questioned costs.

The Report to Congress also mentions The US Forest Service and Connecticut Job Corps Center and its contractor ITT Federal Services Corps.

Due to missing or insufficient ITT documentation and accounting errors, our audit questioned costs of $297,892 in nonpersonnel and personnel costs ($176,385 in nonpersonnel costs, $98,880 in personnel costs, and $22,627 in general administrative expenses).

Filed under: Adams and Associates, Connecticut Job Corps, Contractors, Fraud, Improper billing, ITT Federal Service Corps, Job Corps, Job Corps Centers, Labor unions, Mississippi Job Corps, number manipulation, OIG Reports, U.S. Forestry Service, Adams and Associates, Connecticut Job Corps Center, ITT Federal Service Corps, Mississippi Job Corps, National Plastering Industry's Joint Apprenticeship Fund, Office of the Inspector General, US Forest Service