The 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education funding bill provides $1.76 billion in federal funding to keep Job Corps centers open. Schumer also secured language that blocks the closure of Job Corps centers unless such closures meet specific requirements.

“Job Corps is one of the best bang for your buck programs we have to boost our local economies, which is why I fought hard to protect it from Trump’s proposed cuts. I’m proud to announce that, following my advocacy, we have preserved funding for Job Corps, ensuring the continuation of one of America’s largest and most effective workforce training programs,” Senator Schumer said Tuesday. “Job Corps has thousands upon thousands of success stories helping young people develop skills to find jobs in in-demand fields, and today is a victory for all of them and a testament to their hard work. I will continue standing up for federal programs like Job Corps that support our small businesses and help young New Yorkers find good jobs and thrive.”

Locally, no one is happier than the village of Cassadaga.

“It’s absolutely wonderful news,” said Cassadaga Mayor Rudy Abersold. “All the residents of the village of Cassadaga are going to benefit from the long stability of the Job Corps program.”

A rally to save Job Corps filled Stockton Fire Hall last June.

The Cassadaga Job Corps center, which opened in 1978, is one of 99 non-federally operated Job Corps centers. Abersold, himself, began working at Job Corps in Cassadaga back when he was in high school. He worked in food service and later became a supervisor of the center’s dining room after graduating from high school. He left to pursue a career in manufacturing, and later became a tool and die maker for 33 years.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for young adults to further their education, to get an education in a trade, and it is certainly a viable part of our community,” Abersold said.

Through his own time at Job Corps, Abersold was exposed to a whole new outlook on life outside of Cassadaga. Prior to that point, he had only gotten to know people from his close-knit community. With Job Corps students from many different backgrounds coming to the area from out of town – many from the New York City and New Jersey area – Abersold gained a new perspective.

This past year, after the U.S. Department of Labor announced that it was “pausing” Job Corps center operations nationwide, the village of Cassadaga rallied around its local center. Current Village Trustee Cathy Cruver, a Fredonia teacher, and former Village Trustee Cindy Flaherty both strongly advocated for Job Corps at Village Board meetings.

“It’s an important thing for us to support, especially in communities like ours,” Cruver said.

Flaherty also attended a rally in support of Job Corps.

“It’s a lifeline for many, many kids and it employs more than 100 local people,” Flaherty said.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the Job Corps program operated at a $140 million deficit in 2024. The deficit is projected to reach $213 million in 2025.

The Cassadaga Job Corps center has a graduation rate of 39.53%, according to a Department of Labor official. The cost per graduate in Cassadaga is $123,654.22.

Flaherty stated the reason the graduation rate is so low and the cost per graduate is so high is because students who opt to pursue a GED rather than a traditional diploma do not count toward the total as graduates until they obtain a career training certificate. Flaherty said if students who receive a GED counted toward the total figure, the graduation rate would be near 90% and the cost per graduate would be significantly lower.

In addition to the training Job Corps provides to its students, it also helps support Cassadaga as a major water customer. Village Clerk Annette McChesney estimated that Job Corps spends roughly $45,000 annually as a water customer, in addition to paying its portion of debt service. If Job Corps were to cease operations, Cassadaga water customers would have seen a sizable increase to their water bills.

“It’s a tremendous asset to us with our water, both in debt service and sale with their consumption of water,” Abersold said. He estimated Job Corps as roughly a third of the village’s water system.

In May, President Donald Trump’s administration paused operations at Job Corps centers nationwide. Afterward, a federal judge temporarily blocked Trump from shutting down Job Corps centers, and another federal judge said operations must resume until the previous case is resolved. Schumer explained that the Trump administration not only attempted to shut down Job Corps centers, but in his budget request, Trump said he wanted to totally zero out funding for the program, effectively killing the program without needing the approval of federal courts.

After hearing about Trump’s proposed cuts last year, Schumer traveled to Job Corps centers across Upstate New York, from the Iroquois Job Corps center in Orleans County to the Cassadaga Job Corps center in Chautauqua County and the Otsego Job Corps Center, to stand with students, staff, and small business owners and demand we protect this vital pipeline for skilled workers to fill jobs.

Anand Vimalassery, National Job Corps Association Interim President & CEO said, “Job Corps faced unprecedented disruption and uncertainty over the last year. Through it all, Senator Schumer stood by our students and staff in Calicoon, Cassadaga, Glenmont, Medina, New York City, and Oneonta. His leadership is helping ensure young adults in New York continue to have a pathway into the skilled workforce through Job Corps and we’re grateful for his support.”

Schumer said Job Corps centers have helped millions of young people ages 16 to 24 finish high school, learn technical skills, and get jobs in in-demand fields such as healthcare and construction. Low-income and at-risk young people have received stable housing and healthcare while developing the skills they need to get good-paying jobs after graduation. Across Upstate NY, centers in Albany, Sullivan, Orleans, Otsego, and Chautauqua Counties serve thousands of young New Yorkers and employ over 500 staff.

“Thank you, Senator Chuck Schumer, for your advocacy efforts in preserving Job Corps,” said Cassadaga Job Corps graduate Arlene Tariq, LMSW. “This program gave me real opportunity, skills, and direction at a time when I needed it most. Because of Job Corps, I was able to build a foundation for my future that truly changed my life.”