Center for Family Services Opens Cumberland County Youth Career Center in Vineland

The Center for Family Services has opened a Youth Career Center at 3624 E. Landis Avenue in Vineland, bringing job training, credentialing and wraparound supports to area young people ages 16-24. The center aims to connect residents with academics, workplace skills and placement services meant to bridge school and work transitions.

Center for Family Services operates the site and highlights a statewide footprint of more than 100 programs. The Youth Career Center offers "Academic & educational support; Assistance in obtaining industry-recognized credentials; Job placement assistance; Supportive services; Soft skills training; Community connections; Financial literacy," with soft skills training broken down into "career readiness, team building, time management, problem solving, and communication." Center for Family Services describes the staff as experienced, dedicated, and passionate and says the program’s goal is to help young people create a path forward.

Funding for the Vineland center comes from the Workforce Development Board of Cumberland, Salem and Cape May Counties. The location is intended to serve local workforce and youth development needs by linking young adults with credential pathways and employer connections that can shorten the route to stable employment.

There is a discrepancy in public materials about eligibility that residents should note. The initial announcement characterized the center as "open to all out-of-school youth ages 16-24." Center for Family Services’ referral information, however, lists the center as "open to Cumberland County residents aged 16-24." Prospective participants and referral partners are advised to confirm eligibility directly with the center before applying or referring youth.

The center also joins an existing local ecosystem of youth workforce supports. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Cumberland County runs programs such as Power Hour for homework help, CareerLaunch (also known as C5) for first-job and internship readiness, Junior Staff for teen workplace experience, and Diplomas to Degrees for college readiness. Those community programs and the Youth Career Center are likely to interact around training pipelines and employer engagement in the county.

For referrals and information, the center lists phone contact at 877-922-2377 and an email contact at access@centerffs.org. Residents seeking to refer young people, confirm eligibility, learn hours of operation, or inquire about intake and program capacity should use those contacts.

What this means for Cumberland County is a closer alignment of workforce funding and youth services under a locally based site intended to move 16-24-year-olds toward credentials and employment. Next steps for residents include confirming eligibility and enrollment procedures with Center for Family Services and watching for announcements about program schedules, partner employers, and performance targets as the center begins operations.