Pura Vida Pathways is an 8-month, three-level workforce development and emotional wellness program designed to support justice-involved youth ages 14–24 across NYC. The program provides healing-centered reentry support, technical skill development, paid opportunities, and career pathways that uplift youth transitioning from detention, trauma, foster care, or unstable environments.

The program includes:
Level 1 – Foundations Cohort
Soft skills, emotional regulation, communication, professionalism, and financial literacy.

Level 2 – Vocational Cohort
Hands-on training in:
• Construction
• Culinary Arts
• Warehouse Logistics + Forklift Certification
• Digital Literacy & Media

Level 3 – Applied Experience Cohort
Paid internships, apprenticeships, employer placements, and job coaching.

Each young person receives weekly check-ins, transportation aid, mental-health services, and long-term follow-up to ensure stability and successful workforce integration.
This program builds confidence, provides income, heals trauma, and prepares youth for careers with living wages—interrupting cycles of incarceration and hardship.
Pura Vida Pathways is a transformational reentry and workforce initiative that gives justice-involved youth the tools, healing, and opportunities they need to succeed. By combining emotional readiness, paid career experiences, mentorship, certifications, and job placement, the program reduces recidivism and strengthens entire communities.

For many participants, this program is their first real chance to build independence, stability, and a career.
Thousands of NYC youth returning from detention face:
• Homelessness
• Lack of employment
• Unaddressed trauma
• Instability and unsafe environments
• No consistent adult guidance
• Barriers to certifications and career access
These conditions dramatically increase the risk of reoffending—not due to lack of ability, but due to lack of structured support.

Pura Vida Pathways addresses this by providing:
• Emotional healing
• Paid workforce opportunities
• Vocational certifications
• Mentorship
• Career placement
• A long-term support system
This program creates a stable bridge from incarceration to independence.
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