News Release Archive

Manager Selected for Centennial Job Corps

Media Contact: Jonne Hower, (208) 378-5101, 09/09/2004 17:54
Sharon Marmon, Marmon.Sharon@JobCorps.Org

For Release: September 09, 2004

Tom Zender recently was named as the Center Director for the Centennial Job Corps in Nampa, Idaho, according to the Bureau of Reclamation.

"I am pleased to announce Tom's selection for this assignment," said Pacific Northwest Regional Director Bill McDonald. "In addition to bringing more than 30 years of experience with the Job Corps, Tom brings enthusiasm and a strong commitment to youth," McDonald concluded.

Centennial Job Corps Center, located in Nampa, provides education, social skills, and vocational training for approximately 300 students at a time. The number of students at any given time fluctuates throughout the year due to graduations and departures.

"I believe the fundamental purpose of a Job Corps Center is to help students gain confidence in themselves and to serve their community by helping others and giving back to society," Zender said. "A Job Corps Center is more than a school, more than a place where vocational trades are taught, and more than a residential living component--it is a resource for the whole region," he continued.

Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Zender holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Loyola University. He was most recently director of the Columbia Basin Job Corps Center in Moses Lake, Washington.

The Job Corps is a no-cost education and vocational training program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor that helps young people ages 16 through 24 get a better job, make more money and take control of their lives. Centennial Job Corps is one of three Job Corps facilities managed by the Bureau of Reclamation in the Pacific Northwest.

Centennial Job Corps will be celebrating its 40th anniversary, September 29 with a Job Fair and other festivities. For more information about the celebration or Centennial, contact Sharon Marmon at 442-4503 or see the website at www.centennialjobcorps.org.

The Centennial Job Corps Center in Nampa, Idaho, officially opened its doors in October, 1997. As one of the newest Job Corps Centers in the nation, Centennial replaced the 33-year-old Marsing Job Corps Center. In addition to the approximately 300 residential students, youth who live in the Nampa community or near the campus have the opportunity to train at Centennial Job Corps as non-residents and commute to the campus daily.

# # #

The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.