June 2024
On Tuesday morning, hundreds of Camp Rise students gathered at Milwaukee's City Hall to receive a warm welcoming from Mayor Cavalier Johnson. The free six-week camp provides Milwaukee youth with safe spaces to explore career interests, learn new life skills and partake in community service.
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April 2024
CBS 58 News spotlighted partnership with the Milwaukee Bucks: A new six-month program in collaboration with Employ Milwaukee, Milwaukee Bucks and Milwaukee County Community Reintegration Center gives incarcerated individuals opportunity to work for the Milwaukee Bucks.
For a decade, Employ Milwaukee has provided resources, guidance and training to hundreds of students to attain fulfilling and in-demand jobs. For kids who need resources beyond their homes, Employ Milwaukee started Building Futures.
Spectrum News spotlighted YouthBuild: A program in Milwaukee is working to help resolve two major challenges the city faces: a shortage of affordable housing for low-income families and a lack of opportunities for at-risk young adults.
February 2024
“Serve MKE represents a pivotal step towards improving job quality and economic mobility for hospitality workers in our community,” said Chytania Brown, president and chief executive officer of Employ Milwaukee. “For too long, essential jobs in the hospitality sector have been characterized by low wages, limited benefits, and minimal opportunities for advancement. Through Serve MKE, we aim to address these disparities and ensure that all hospitality workers have access to gainful, quality employment.”
Employ Milwaukee is the recipient of a $4.9 million Department of Labor “Building Pathways to Infrastructure” grant. The grant will allow Employ Milwaukee to launch a Skills to Build program, an initiative that will aim to prepare nearly 500 historically underserved individuals for high-demand infrastructure jobs. This training will take place over the next five years throughout southeastern Wisconsin.
November 2023
Employ Milwaukee and the Milwaukee County Community Reintegration Center is offering a new program for inmates to help them gain skills to get a trades job once their sentences are over.
October 2023
Dave Steele with MobiliSE joins Millie Coby with Employ Milwaukee on TMJ4 to talk about FlexRide Milwaukee expanding and a new free option for working parents.
September 2023
FlexRide, which is an on-demand transportation service, has launched a new program."FlexRide for Working Parents" is the expansion. The expanded service will help Milwaukee adults and their children get to work and daycare without barriers.
August 2023
CBS 58 highlights the success of Camp RISE, a Milwaukee program focusing on preparing youth for employment, with most attention going to money management and soft skills, like preparation, conversation and conflict resolution.
The pandemic forced nonprofit leaders to navigate uncharted waters. Times like those are often when leaders make their best decisions. That’s how Chytania Brown, CEO of Employ Milwaukee, got involved in digital inclusion work and ultimately led citywide digital programs.
July 2023
Dozens of Milwaukee boys got to work painting a new mural going up in the Amani neighborhood. They are a part of Camp Rise, an Earn and Learn initiative developed by the City of Milwaukee, Employ Milwaukee, Voices of the Elders, and Milwaukee Public Schools.
June 2023
Summer break is in full swing for kids in Milwaukee, and now, a youth employment program is kicking off its second year of work. Employ Milwaukee's Camp Rise offers kids ages 10-13 paid work experience.City officials say they hope this will make a big difference in young people's futures.
This morning, the inauguration of the second year of Camp RISE took place. Chytania Brown, President & CEO of Employ Milwaukee, welcomed everyone present. “It’s hard to find in this country a program that focuses on workforce development that starts with youth as young as ten,” she stated.
This week, hundreds of youth will take part in the free seven-week summer camp, which pays Milwaukee kids 10-13 $200 a week. Students take field trips to different businesses; participate in career exploration; clean up parks; do teamwork drills; receive mentoring throughout the community; and get to spend time with leaders like the mayor!
May 2023
Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Mayor Cavalier Johnson announced a $2 million federal investment in Milwaukee's water utilities workforce. Employ Milwaukee will support efforts to build a more equitable workforce and address critical labor shortages through training and development in the plumbing and construction trades at Milwaukee Water Works.
April 2023
Thanks to Kohl’s and other sponsors, Employ Milwaukee’s Digital Literacy Lab is bridging the gap between digital literacy. This program is a real game-changer for keeping up with this digital world we live in.
Kohl's has been a generous donor to Employ Milwaukee for several years now. Kohl's supports the Digital Literacy Lab, a program that works to further advance and scale DEI efforts by enhancing Basic IT skills training, device distribution, access to affordable and reliable internet, and expansion of a virtual service delivery platform. You can read more the partnership on pages 51-56 of the report.
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March 2023
Employ Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) organized the "Winning with Wisconsin's Workforce" event. It was an opportunity for local employers to connect with workers, and learn about resources to help their businesses.
In 2021, Employ Milwaukee expanded its virtual service platform to include a Digital Literacy Lab in partnership with the national nonprofit EveryoneOn and the Kohl's Corporation. The digital training lab ensures job seekers have the necessary IT skills and devices to access virtual services through an eight-week online course.
February 2023
Chytania Brown started her career as a probation and parole officer, but she really wanted to work in prevention. When the opportunity opened up to be the president and CEO of Employ Milwaukee, applying for the position was a no-brainer. Since starting her role in March of 2020, Ms. Brown has built a strong team at Employ Milwaukee.
Advocate Aurora Health has partnered with Employ Milwaukee to create the Milwaukee Healthcare Workforce Initiative (MHWI), a program to increase underrepresented populations’ access to quality health care careers through training and guaranteed job interviews.
BizTimes recognizes Chytania Brown as a notable BIPOC executive for Black History Month 2023! “Chytania approaches community service with the mentality of wearing a jersey, not a cape,” said an Employ Milwaukee employee.
July 2022
Employ Milwaukee CEO Chytania Brown and Lindsay Blumer, CEO of WRTP/BIG STEP were invited to the White House in July to speak at the American Rescue Plan Act Workforce Summit, where they shared each organization’s experience of using federal funds to help Wisconsin residents.
Two hundred Milwaukee boys with Camp RISE, a summer youth program, earned their first paychecks Friday, July 1. "It feels really good. I got my first job," 11-year-old Jamel Cunningham said.
June 2022
Employee Milwaukee and community leaders on Tuesday, June 21 officially launched the new "Camp RISE" summer youth program. Camp RISE is a free summer enrichment program that will provide Milwaukee youth with tools to become community leaders.
March 2022
It’s almost construction season in Wisconsin, and more projects creates a big need for employees. At Employ Milwaukee's construction job fair, job seekers were able to take advantage of multiple employers being in one place. "I’ve been trying to get into a trade job over the past year, and I felt like today was a great opportunity," said one job fair attendee.
February 2022
Community banks in the Milwaukee and Chicago regions have found hiring success through a program called BankWork$, an eight-week training program offered free to adults in under-served communities who want a career in financial services. Employ Milwaukee and Jovo Potkonjak have brought BankWork$ to Milwaukee!
May 2022
A year ago, summer job opportunities were scant because of the coronavirus pandemic. This year, city and county officials are trying to make sure every young person who wants a job can get a job. “If you’re a young person looking for a job, this is your opportunity to be involved and make this a better community for all of us,” Mayor Tom Barrett said.
February 2020
Longtime workforce development leader Chytania Brown has been tapped to be the next president and CEO of the Milwaukee County workforce development board, Employ Milwaukee.
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