years ago this past tuesday and will come to our class of 80 students. we are trying to solve two problems of the same time. the first is that companies are struggling to find talent, particularly in the field of technology. at the same time, there are thousands of talented young adults in the city and more than 5 million across the country looking for the opportunity to build a meaningful career. our students go through five months of intensive training and hard i.t. skills and the increasingly important soft skills of communication and professionalism. this is on by an internship of one of 21 companies, who are represented today. we expect the number of companies to grow because of the leadership we have been city hall. there is a buzz in the city because we have an administration that understands the importance of economic development, and one that understands economic development is still by workforce

development. it have to attend both at the same time. it is my honor to introduce a man who knows how to create and the the economic engine, the honorable mayor ed lee. [applause] >> thank you very much. i have had a chance to reflect the last couple of hours on what i wanted to say today. the first thing that came to my mind was the years that i spent in every community of the city picking up trash with kids, all over the neighborhoods, just realizing what can we do to reach everybody in each neighborhood? we tried to do that through the neighborhood cleanup. more importantly, when it came to jobs and future, when i ascended to this position, i wanted to signal strongly that not only would we bring business back in the most enlightening way and get those new economy's

going, but we would do it in a way to create open our kids. the worst thing is to have kids in neighborhood say, downtown and city hall, they get the jobs and create businesses and they make those tax decisions, but it does not touch me. it is not about me. how do we do that in the city, where it is so exciting these days to invite our technology companies to come together and work with us? that has been on my mind for a long time. it was there years ago when we struggled with this concept called digital divide. remember that? technology is moving ahead, apple and everybody is in silicon valley and they are creating these wonderful machines, but not for us. we have to catch up in some way, and if we're lucky, we can get one of these jobs. i do not want to depend on luck any more. it should be part of the way we think in this city.

when we create opportunities for businesses to thrive here, when recreate jobs, when i invite twitter to stay in the city and have that decision resonate, working with supervisors like mark farrell, and jane kim, we all work together. we have to think several steps ahead. the most exciting thing is to have a san francisco resident land these jobs and get the foundation by which they will be successful. that is what we mean when we use the world sustainable. those words are not part of us either. they were for the environmental movement. what does that mean for us? it is really about making sure our local government works to create the conditions which our kids are successful and the very businesses that we give breaks to, and then we help establish success for, and then we invite

to come into our city. today is going to be another great announcement. i want to thank you for all the work you are doing. i want to thank colon for joining us as well, helping us put together a fantastic grant application, and to also thank minority leader pelosi's office. friends who also believe this is where we have to go. this is what san francisco has been all about. today, announcing that we have a grant from the department of labor for $5 million, that fulfills an application put together brilliantly and number of different companies, training institutions, collaborating with the city college, to bring real hope to our kids in san

francisco, kids that we care about. we fulfil a promise that has been made for decades that we would not leave you without hope in the city. we put real dollars into that today. you are going to hear this from this administration time and again. you will have a lot of your colleagues talk about this day. everything has changed from this day forward. we are not going to have businesses just succeed on their own without lifting of our participation. whether it is jobs looking at those earlier jobs that we focused on. these tech companies and their early stages were looking for the most brilliant software engineers they could find, so they were recruiting from berkeley, stanford, and they got to that initial talent. but as they grow and sustain this industry, they are looking for data systems administrators.

they're looking for multimedia artists. graphic designers. they are looking for marketers and customer service people. all of the town that wants to stand behind me that it is represented here is san francisco's. the greatness of our city is with the town we have locally. there is not going to be a divide here. there will be an opportunity here, with this grant, we create the educational links that give the skill sets and then the companies will turn around -- the companies have already committed that are here today -- like ibm, ibm, salesforce, all the companies that have joined us in this effort, have been a commitment to hire from this training center we are creating today. so it is not just a promise any more. real dollars are being spent. you are going to be trained, you will get those skills, and it will go right into job opportunities and this will be

the recruitment center for companies relocating here. the promise is being delivered because we have friends like nancy pelosi, jay, gleen and others working with organizations in san francisco to make us successful author of the stages. it is not just an announcement about money. it is an announcement about the way we do things and the way we think in this city. these kids should never feel that their local government has abandoned them in anyway. we are promising you that you have these jobs. we want you to stay and growth here, just like what the company's to stay and grow. what our kids to be proud of the city that they grew up in and love. when you are aware around the city and doing your second jobs to get through school, the members about being here and having your generation create your family here is going to

begin today. it is my pleasure to announce this grant today, but to thank all of the collaboration that has gone on. this grant will be done through tech sf, something that we have been talking about since we ever started this conversation with various companies. we want our work force to be included. we won our residents to know these are not just companies that are going to make money because they seem to have found some rich niche here. they are going to do with local talent, invest in our people. that is how you bring a whole city around to welcoming an industry that we are excited about. not only will it happen here in these technologies. i see the same thing happening in the biotech and life sciences companies we are inviting in the mission. even with companies like the giants and how they operate, and

maybe the warriors if they come here. any institution that we have, they will look towards our kids and youth, and then it is not only that as well. i am also talking about the returning veterans who used to live here and in his or her service, can come back and feel will come to get into job opportunities. is about people who may have lost their jobs recently and may need to change careers that are struggling to do to city college and they discovered their classes were canceled because of some stupid person in sacramento did not make the right decision. that we make the right promise here. we will keep this legacy going for generations. i am excited about this partnership, excited about tech sf, but i mostly excited about our kids. you will see your future working here in san francisco. [applause]

>> thank you very much, mr. mayor. i have never before been included in a sentence with nancy pelosi. i desperately with my mom was here today. [laughter] we fully recognize this day was not possible without the leadership we have in washington, d.c. it is my honor and privilege to invite dan from leader pelosi's office. >> thank you. leader policy could not be here because of congressional business but she was so proud to support the proposal because it has everything we need to succeed. we have a mayor committed to making san francisco the cradle of innovation and entrepreneurship. we have the talent and creativity of the people of san francisco and the strength and leadership of all of our partner organizations. she was excited to learn that this grant would be awarded and

mushy could not be here today, ask me to share some words. dear friends, today we celebrate a victory for the economic security of our workers, the growth of our city, prosperity of local families, and creation of local american jobs. attorneys gramm and investing in tech as several transcendence systems for the jobs of tomorrow, as per our rt industry, strength and great careers and education about ways for the work force, and meet the needs of entrepreneurs and businesses large and small. perhaps most important, we will reduce our dependence on the visa program and the need to bring more foreign workers to our communities because the i.t. sector should be staffed and driven by san francisco's workers because american employer should not have to look abroad for employees but finding in our own backyards. with this grant we can put more people to work in high-growth, high-tech occupations and ensure unemployed seven systems have the skills and background necessary to secure and keep

good paying jobs. today's success is a product of a strong public-private partnership between the city and west ed to make investments in small and local businesses so that the community can thrive. this effort is with san francisco always knew the way. i want to thank the city leaders for leading the way. sincerely, nancy pelosi, democratic leader. [applause] thank you. >> we would not be here without wested. they do phenomenal work putting together procedures and thinking critically, which is appreciated. since 1997, glenn hartley has served as the ceo. the nonprofit agency dedicated

to learning for learning for children, youth, and adults. agency staffing has doubled and revenues have grown more than four fold. you may not know this. i heard you talk about the commitment, the belief that all kids to should succeed in our schools and all adults in the community should arrive, despite the circumstances they were born into. all the people involved here today believe that with you. please join me in welcoming the line harvey, ceo of wested. >> good morning. thank you all for coming. i really appreciate it. thank you, mr. mayor, we are so excited about this. i am the ceo of wested. we have been headquartered in san francisco since the mid 1960's, so we have a long commitment to the city and we

are focused on improved learning for children youth, and adults across whole country. we are proud that wested could bring together with a strong support of the mayor's office, bringing together this partnership. this grant is so important to the city and to our collective commitment to all of you, to keep you here. none of our organizations could have secured this grant by results. one of the things that is most impressive about this effort is it was a collaboration of all these groups that came together, and now more than 1800 people in our city, many of whom have been unemployed for way too long in this economy, now have new opportunities for career training and internships to be launched, new successful careers.

we are really proud to be part of that. we, wested, will be the managing partner project manager of this initiative. most of the people you see here will be the on the ground trainers, working with all of you. i want to take a minute to introduce people. i am not sure i know where everyone is. rhonda simmons is here, the director of work-force development for the office of economic and workforce development. phyllis mcguire, vice chancellor for city college. carol burnie is the executive director for -- we have not met. i am sure i'm not supposed to say that. nice to meet you. billy wong, the executive director here. of course, jay, who you know. and these are not all the partners but the major partners who have committed here, along

with ibm, at&t, and others, to be involved in this. i would simply say thank you to everyone who helped to make this a reality. this was truly a collaborative collective efforts. now we have to get down to -- you're talking about the real effort -- after the celebration, we have to really deliver. you should hold us accountable. we are eager to get started and to get you into the workforce. we will be here after words if you have questions. thank you all for coming. [applause] >> i am sensing a theme of partnership today. partnership extends to the mayor's office and to washington, d.c. and across to hall at city hall. it is my honor to welcome supervisors mark farrell and christine al-awlaki.

[applause] -- olague. >> this is a major grant to make sure that people in the middle of their careers in all neighborhoods get the skills and training need to get all of the high tech jobs center coming here. i called for a hearing recently with the city and school district because i am interested in learning about how public school education prepares students to access these jobs in the growing technology industry in san francisco. it is a very important cornerstone of our economic development efforts. first, we have to attract and create the jobs, and then we have to make sure they go to san franciscans, and that is but this grand and the tech assets initiative will help us to do. i think it was harvey milk that said we have to give them hope. -- s.f. initiative will help

us to do. i also want to thank the participants in the program. it takes a lot of initiative and discipline to say, i wanted take on these new skills, i want to transform my life. in transforming myself and achieving these skills with the discipline and commitment you have, then you are also transforming your communities and society as a whole. i especially want thank you for your commitment to this program, and to acquiring the skills to really change our lives and contribute back to our society in san francisco in a positive way. i want to thank you for participating in this program. [applause] >> a in thank you, christina. first of all, i want to thank jay for having us here today. i am sure all of you are

familiar, but this is one of the most amazing organizations we have in san francisco. i have had the opportunity to speak here a number of times to the children and am impressed more and more by the caliber of people that are here. thank you for all you do and to tiffany and dan for fostering that vision and the amazing organization you run. thank you so much for everything that you do. today, this grant marks a real cornerstone in our economic development in the city. of course, we need to first create the jobs and attract a company that will build the jobs into the future but we also need to train our work force here in san francisco to make sure they are the ones willing those roles. san francisco, through the leadership of mayor lee, a lot of us on the board of supervisors, is building on our successes and becoming that innovation capital of the world

that we have had the promise of building. we have so many natural attributes in san francisco. it is our geography, arts and culture, vibrant neighborhoods, everything a city should be. i think now you are seeing an economic development climate where we are probably trying to attract new jobs and industries to our city. whether it is the payroll tax initiative that kept twitter here in the mid market, stock options, other policies, we are changing the culture of city hall and, in turn, san francisco. what we're doing now is we are seeing the jobs come back. as the rest of the country grips with recovered from our huge recession, san francisco is leading the way. our unemployment rate has dropped two points in the last year. we have an unemployment rate under 8% right now. not many cities can boast that. in the last year, it has dropped since mayor lee and we at the

border supervisors came into office. for me, this continues we are doing at city hall, our mission. and a real point to the students here. please know that city hall and your local government is here because we want to create a better future and we are working for you. we will not rest until we deliver on that promise. congratulations to everyone. we look forward to seeing this make a difference four years to come in our city. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, supervisors, for being here. as i mentioned earlier, when our students finish, they move onto internships with 22 companies, including mozilla, j.p. morgan chase, and micromenders, among others. the first of them to join us was

salesforce.com. they are the enterprise, computing company that is leading the ship to social enterprise. one of the largest and best employers in the city. it is my honor to welcome one of our best friends from salesforce.com. [applause] >> thank you. we are delighted to be here and be a part of this exciting and groundbreaking announcement. i have to say, it is an honor to serve -- share the stage with mayor lee and our corporate partners. thank you for inviting us to be here. salesforce.com is dedicated to recruiting and hiring the best possible talent across the city of san francisco. we are proud to be a founding corporate partner of your day area hosting four intern's. now over three years later i am excited to say, we have posted

47 intern's across seven classes. some are here today. [applause] just as salesforce.com transformed the enterprise software market with cloud computing, you are transforming the talent and what it looks like. i am sure i speak for all the partners when i say that the intern's bring value to our organization with their willingness to learn and their enthusiasm. it is because of this that we welcome them into our site as internes and in many cases, and by 10 to stay as full-time employees. it is a pleasure when that happens. salesforce.com will continue to support the efforts and as we continue to grow, we are excited to see it a partnership between the city of san francisco and europe bay area as they strive to support more young people as

they enter into the fast pace and exciting will the technology. thank you again for having us here today. [applause] for having us here again today. [applause] >> now for the part you really want to hear from, some of the students and graduates of the programs that we served here. since 2008, europe bay area graduated more than 200 students locally and thousands nationally. 87% are employed within four months of graduation, rt on average $15.69 an hour, or enrolling in college full time. it is my pleasure to introduce one of our graduates will give you a good sense of the talent that exists in our communities and what happens when that talent is matched with real opportunities. please add join me in welcoming that student. [applause] >> thank you. and thank you, mayor lee, for

inviting me to speak. i am a graduate. i had a tough childhood. my parents divorced before i was born. my father passed away when i was two. when i graduated from high school, i graduated -- was on my own. the only thing i could find was in retail. for several years, i bounced from job to job, just getting by. in 2009, i was laid off. after months of searching, i cannot find a job. i found myself alone on a cold autumn inight in union square. i was homeless. i thought to myself, i do not want this to be my story. i wanted more out of life. after sleeping on the streets for two nights, i was likely -- lucky to connect with the vietnamese center, who suggested i apply for europe.

europe changed my life's in the valley. i learn skills that helped me become a professional and gained knowledge that set me up for success. europe believed in me and taught me the importance of taking chances. i completed the first five months of intensive learning and earned an internship. i learned html and deploy e- mails to millions of people. after six months, responses offered me a job. i humbly accepted it. i went from sleeping on the streets and homeless shelters and no sleeping in my own bed in my own apartment. from the jobless to working full time at one of the top companies in america. europe open my eyes to my full potential. now i have goals. education is no longer -- no longer something at the end of my to do list. it is now a priority. i do not care myself -- carry myself with a shame but with determination. europe is more than an organization that teaches young

adults about technology, business, and how to become a professional. this is an organization that changes lives and contributes to making the world a better place. europe was my second chance to live. thank you. [applause] >> so i think this is fair to say, you have opened our eyes to a lot of things. you have been an inspiration and a leader to so many people. i would like to welcome up carol, who will introduce our next speaker. [applause] >> thank you. thank you, mayor lee. thank you to everyone that the office of economic and workforce development who made this grant possible. we are extremely excited to be part of this incredible collaboration, especially because it brings us together

with partners who we already have, like mozilla and city college but will also bring us closer to some partners who we are looking for two meeting. also at salesforce, which is our data base. so thank you, salesforce. [laughter] it is my pleasure to introduce one of our adult students. she let me know that she actually just finished one of our city -- certificate programs last friday, and she has a lot to say about what has been provided for her. i cannot be happier about all we have been able to do for her. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for having me here and inviting me to join you at this press conference. i moved to san francisco about two years ago, and i did not know a lot of people. i knew i wanted to be a video editor. i applied and applied and cannot get the job. i knew i was missing a little extra skill set.

i needed that extra something. i had the drive, but i needed the no-out. i found a job that helped me make ends meet, but it was not the job i want it. i read about the classes and they offered the actual teaching, the actual know-how, how to work this program so i can go into an interview and said confidently, yes, i can do that. and truthfully, yes, i can do that. that is something i was not seeing from the their programs. bayvac really promised that. it was a certification and video post-production. not only did it provide the glasses, it provided gay community. when i moved here, like i said, i did not know a lot of people. that can be problematic if you're trying to find a job. meeting my teachers, seeing their creators, how they made it work gave me that extra inspiration, that