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“AFTERMATH OF THE MARC TRAIN CRASH” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Labor was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E339-E340 on March 13, 1996.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
AFTERMATH OF THE MARC TRAIN CRASH; HONORING THE CREW AND THE JOB CORPS
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HON. STEPHEN HORN
of california
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, March 13, 1996
Mr. HORN. Mr. Speaker, a few short weeks ago, many Americans were shocked by the loss of life in the Amtrak/Maryland Commuter Rail [MARC] railroad tragedy. Among those who died were eight outstanding young people who were turning their lives around: Dante Swain, 18, Baltimore; Michael Woodson, 26, Philadelphia; Diana Hanvichid, 17, Woodbridge, Virginia; Lakeisha Marshall, 17, Capitol Heights, Maryland; Carlos Byrd, 17, Baltimore; Claudius Kessoon, 20, Landover, Maryland; Thomas Loatman, 23, Vienna, Virginia; and Karis Rudder, 17, Elmhurst, New York. Three fine MARC train crew members also died while heroically trying to save the passengers instead of themselves: Richard Orr, James Quillen, James Majors, all of Maryland.
The young people were enrolled in the Job Corps at the time of their deaths. They were participants in one of the oldest and most successful Federal programs that gives at-risk youth a chance to build positive lives for themselves. They were striving to create the kind of lives that the MARC train crew members had made for themselves--responsible, productive, and hard working. The ideals of the Job Corps represent the dreams of these young people and the lives of the MARC train crewmen.
The Job Corps was born in 1964, during the Great Society of Lyndon Johnson. It is one of that era's most productive and effective offspring. As the Nation's largest and most comprehensive residential job training and education program for at-risk youth, the Job Corps has provided more than 1.6 million disadvantaged youth with a pathway to prosperity and productivity. Some Job Corps graduates have become millionaires, Ph.D.s, judges, psychologists--even a World Heavyweight Boxing champion [George Foreman].
The Job Corps was established as a public-private partnership. Under a contract with the U.S. Department of Labor, private industry operates almost 80 percent of the Job Corps centers. The remaining centers are managed through contracts with such Government agencies as the Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service.
Job Corps students are young people between the ages of 16 and 24 who are making a determined effort to achieve a productive, responsible life. Job Corps statistics show that their determination pays off: Seven out of ten Job Corps students go on to full-time employment, enlistment in the military, or further education at the college level.
The return on the financial investment in the Job Corps brings impressive results. A 1983 study showed that the Job Corps yields a 46-
percent return to society on every dollar invested in it. The average cost per Job Corps student is $15,426 over a 7.5 month period--the average length of stay--This translates into $67 per student per day. The cost-benefit ratio of the Job Corps is dramatic when you compare this expenditure to the yearly per student cost at a public university--$17,246--or the average cost to incarcerate a juvenile for 1 year--$38,000--or the cost per cadet for 1 year at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point--$62,250--.
The young people who perished were students at the Harpers Ferry Job Corps site in West Virginia. It is one of 110 centers nationwide, including Puerto Rico, where approximately 60,000 young people are turning their lives around. A residential center, the Harpers Ferry Job Corps Center, provides basic education and the chance to earn a high school equivalency degree, training in life skills, as well as medical services and vocational counseling. The 210 students enrolled there are preparing to enter the construction trades, and business, clerical, and health occupations.
The loss of the admirable young Harpers Ferry Job Corps members and the brave MARC train crew cannot be replaced. However, we can celebrate their hopes, dreams, and successes through the Job Corps.
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