'We believe in you. We believe in your promise.'

They are lives caught between growing up and becoming grownups, and a citywide collaboration of leaders called Baltimore’s Promise is trying to help them get there.

“We need to build the region’s talent. We have lots of great companies,” said Baltimore’s Promise CEO Julia Baez, “We have lots of great jobs and we have lots of talented, young people in this city who just need the right opportunities to get connected and be able to show up in those jobs.”

A study showed that one out of four Baltimore City High School graduates weren’t working or going to school a year after receiving their diplomas.

Five years later, their average annual salaries were just $11,000.

Now, a program called CareerBound will try to change that.

“Young people of Baltimore City. We believe in you. We believe in your promise,” said Baltimore City Public Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelises at a launch of the program at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center.

The program offers occupational skills and career training in high-growth fields like healthcare, construction and information technology with the goal of landing more than 8,000 youths in careers by the year 2030.

“More pathways for our high school students for graduates that may not want to go straight to college,” said Santelises, “and that should not be the only way that young people can make a salary that allows them to earn what I like to call a family-sustaining wage.”

More on the program is available here.