Opportunity Youth face multiple challenges

By Kyle Mooty

LPR Editor

Staggering statistics set the unfortunate, yet necessary tone at the first Caldwell County Foundation briefing and discussion last week at the First Lockhart National Bank Community Room.

The meeting centered around Opportunity Youth in the area. Opportunity Youth are classified as those ages 16 to 24 who are out of school and not working or making $15 an hour or less.

Presenters from the National League of Cities, as well as Lone Star Justice Alliance, led a group of about 25 youth leaders throughout Caldwell County.

Sally Daniel, Executive Director of the new Caldwell County Foundation, agreed that the statistics presented were far from flattering, which made it more necessary to address the issues now.

St. David’s Foundation, which covers five counties in Central Texas, has been a generous funding partner for the Caldwell County Foundation.

“We are grateful to our amazing guests for traveling to Lockhart to share their insights on Opportunity Youth, and we are truly inspired by the strong turnout from stakeholders for this conversation,” Daniel said. “We are excited to collaborate with the Central Texas Opportunity Youth Collaborative and connect with additional stakeholders in Caldwell County. Our goal is to create a coalition that will connect available resources and systems and eliminate barriers to the education and employment pathways necessary for helping our kids succeed.”

Caldwell County has one of the highest percentages of Opportunity Youth in Texas.

While Texas has about a half-million Opportunity Youth and 13.7 percent statewide, higher than the national average, Caldwell County is at 20.1 percent. By comparison, Bastrop County is 13.9 percent, Hays County 7.9 percent, and Travis County 7.6 percent.

“One of biggest things that defines an Opportunity Youth is they don’t have access to a living wage,” said Rachel Hampton, Chief Mission Officer for Lone Star Justice Alliance. “There is a workforce shortage, a big shortage, especially in Central Texas.”

Hampton said Caldwell County had a 25.6 percent growth in population from 2010-2022, but that adds to the growing number of Opportunity Youth.

“Texas is ninth highest in the nation for Opportunity Youth,” Hampton said. “One of the biggest things that identifies Opportunity Youth is they don’t have access to a living wage, not just so they can actually live, but if they can save, they can thrive.”

Other statistics noted 70.3 percent of Caldwell County students were at “high risk” of dropping out. Also, 11.8 percent of children in the county ages 0-18 are uninsured, and juveniles are three times more like here to have a court case than the rest of Texas. It was noted that 78 percent of children in the county are eligible for free/reduced lunches; 20 percent ages 25-and-older did not complete high school; and 38.8 percent of Caldwell County residents are considered low-wage (less than $15 per hour) workers.

Kate O’Sullivan, Consultant for the National League of Cities, said anything less than $15 per hour would put those workers “below the poverty line.”

O’Sullivan also said it has been discovered that many kids turn 16 and they are already working, whether with a family business or elsewhere, so they continue doing so, often passing on furthering their education.

It was also stated that 20 percent of youth in Texas are in single-parent households. Caldwell County has 36 per 1,000 with juvenile delinquency referral cases. Texas averages 10 per 1,000.

Lockhart ISD Superintendent Mark Estrada was among those at the meeting.

“We know our county has the lowest educational retainment rate in Central Texas,” Estrada said. “Hopefully, that will change over time.”

Estrada noted the addition of Austin Community College in Lockhart should have a positive impact.

Andrew Moore, Director, Youth & Adult Connections, Leadership, Education, Advancement and Development with the National League of Cities, said his office was particularly excited to hear about ACC coming to Lockhart.

“We have reengagement programs at Lockhart High School and PRIDE High School,” Estrada said. “PRIDE just graduated 72 kids at our Winter Graduation. That was our highest. Usually, we graduate about 40 to 50. We’ll probably graduate another 70 this summer.”

Hampton said one of the common comments from youth is, “We don’t have anywhere to go.”

“There is no free place for them to go,” Hampton said. “They have to pay to go somewhere.”

Curtis Hawkins, who works with various youth groups in Lockhart, said Lockhart needs a recreational center.

“There are some courts, there are some fields, but after 5 o’clock, the lights go off,” Hawkins said.

Daniel agreed.

“We don’t have enough things for our kids to do,” Daniel said. “We’re trying to create more accessible resources.”