In 2016 the Department of Labor (DOL) launched a Job Corps pilot program, the Cascades College and Career Academy Job Corps (CCCA) pilot demonstration, to provide intensive academic instruction, career pathways technical training, and non-cognitive skills training in healthcare and information technology (IT) for at-risk youth, ages 16 to 21. From 2016 to 2020, the evaluation examined the implementation of the CCCA pilot program and its impacts on students' outcomes.

This brief implementation report examines partnerships between Job Corps Centers and community colleges, and summarizes elements of the pilot demonstration that aimed to provide all participants with the opportunity to take community college courses. The sections in the brief describe four elements of strong Job Corps–College partnerships:

• Agreement on a set of detailed goals, including the approximate number of Job Corps students who can enroll in which courses.
• A clear understanding among all parties on roles and responsibilities, especially when there are staff at each organization doing a similar job, such as college and Job Corps advisors.
• Accommodations to the other organization’s or agency’s requirements.
• Open and regular communication. The partnership managers at the college and Job Corps center should speak regularly to ensure both organizations are on the same page.

The centers with community college partnerships identified emerging promising practices and challenges related to staffing and advising, transportation assistance, and tuition and expenses. These centers recognized that having Job Corps staff located at the college was a critical link to Job Corps services. Transportation assistance was an important non-academic support to help students get to class. Navigating the college financial aid system to address tuition and other expenses was challenging for students and the centers. Lastly, Job Corps policies, procedures, and infrastructure sometimes hindered college program operations.