SMCOE outlines equity work and YEEE! program; staff cite $2 million grant and capacity limits

Executive Director Hector Camacho Jr. and Coordinator Rubie Macaraeg briefed the Board on the County Office’s Equity, Social Justice, and Inclusion efforts and the Youth Entrepreneurship, Employment, and Empowerment (YEEE!) program. Macaraeg said the program drew strong demand and is primarily grant-funded; she told the Board the pilot year attracted more than 400 applicants and the program was built with a K-12 Strong Workforce Grant providing $2 million over two-and-a-half years.

On program scale and outcomes, Macaraeg confirmed "the total number is 70 across the entire program" for the summer cohort and reported an attrition rate of roughly 1–2% over five years for summer participants. Staff described how recruitment focuses on students who may not be traditional leaders, using counselor and community referrals, narrative applications and interviews, and no GPA requirement. The team also partners with local organizations and county agencies to deliver industry-aligned certifications (CPR, first aid, Mental Health First Aid) and noted potential partnerships such as Peninsula Healthcare District.

Board members pressed for evaluation methods and long-term outcomes. Camacho and Macaraeg said they work with the Center for Learning and Analytics to design evaluation tools (surveys, focus groups, cohort benchmarks), but comprehensive longitudinal tracking would require additional resources and stronger systems integration. Staff described transportation as a major barrier to expansion, noting free transit passes help but many worksites remain inaccessible by public transit. Superintendent Marco Chávez said decisions about sustaining or expanding the program if grant funding ends would be made by Cabinet and the Board Budget Subcommittee.

Board President Hugo Torres offered to visit the program and requested staff return with an end-of-summer update on the cohort’s results.