Tiny Homes

Twelve youth at OIC of Washington spent their summer and fall in an experiential learning program called OIC Futures. OIC Futures is a re-engagement and job training program that partners West Valley School District’s Open Doors program with OIC’s job training and service opportunities. These 12 students built 2 tiny homes for a program out of Seattle called Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI). LIHI is one of the largest operators of Tiny Houses Villages in the nation. LIHI partnered with ANEW which is the oldest, continuously running pre-apprenticeship program in the nation. Also based in the Puget Sound area, ANEW Consultant Melinda Nichols specifically reached out to YouthBuild-OIC in an effort to bring this opportunity to the east side of the state.

ANEW and LIHI provided the plans and materials and OIC Futures and YouthBuild-OIC provided the people-power, instruction and overall program design and management.

The Tiny Homes built by these students and construction trainer Roger McCausland will be picked up and taken back to the west side and installed in one of LIHI’s established Tiny Homes Villages, which have become national models for solutions to the homeless crisis.

In addition to their construction experience, youth enrolled in OIC Futures have the opportunity to pursue their GED or other academic projects, develop resumes, attend job fairs, and engage in career exploration and job readiness activities. According to OIC Youth Programs Instructor Katy Scofield, OIC Futures had an extremely academically productive summer with a record number of GEDs attained. “We’re seeing a large amount of students who have the skills, but disengaged during COVID-19 and have realized that getting their GED is a faster track to employment”.

Posted January 20, 2023