Pawsperity By Beth Lipoff
For the students at Pawsperity, learning to clip dog hair is the key to finding economic stability. The nonprofit teaches pet grooming skills while also providing a net of social services to help people find their way until they can make their new trade a career. It’s no easy stroll to get there, with 644 instructional hours required to graduate, and 40% of those who start don’t make it through the first month. Those who do make it that far seem to do well. Since 2016, and after completing a sixto eight-month training period, 124 students have graduated from the program. Pawsperity boasts a 100?% post-graduation employment rate within 60 days of finishing. Jenn Strickland, director of development and community relations, says most students have a job offer or two before they even finish. “We’re not through once graduation hits because that’s the stage when they are really the most vulnerable—when they’re starting to get off government assistance, they’re in their new career, and we call that part of our program the bridge program,” Strickland says. That phase lasts 18 months. Although you do have to apply to get into the program, there’s no cost to students at any time. One of the extra services Pawsperity provides, in addition to its free classes, is a food pantry where student can not only get a snack while they’re in the building but also bring home food to their families. The organization has help from other non-profits to fill the pantry, including Harvesters and Jewish Family Services. Also on the list of ways Pawsperity helps support its students is assistance with housing, transportation, and daycare. Strickland says that although anyone meeting income guidelines can apply for the program, they do have a special focus on helping single parents. This assistance might come from Pawsperity connecting a person with another nonprofit that provides a needed service, but sometimes it comes directly from them. They run an apartment building that can house up to six students—and their families. “That stabilization phase is huge because if they’re worried about where they’re going to be sleeping tonight, they’re not going to be able to learn in the school,” Strickland says. They have two salon locations: 5805 Troost Ave. in Kansas City and 1650 SE Blue Parkway in Lee’s Summit, and they always need animals to groom for experience. In exchange, clients get a discounted rate for the
18
THE PITCH | February 2024 | THEPITCHKC.COM
Courtesy photo
service. With their new Kansas City building, Strickland says they’ll be able to have even more students, as many as 80 in a year by 2025. Christina Johnson went through the program in 2018 and is now an instructor at Pawsperity. “I came into the program at one of the darkest points in my life. I went through a divorce and the loss of a child… and through that, had to launch myself into the workforce after being out of work for 10 years being a stay-at-home mom of a very medically complex child,” she says. With slim prospects after being out of the workforce for so long, she jumped at the chance to develop her skills at Pawsperity for a new career. “It was definitely not an easy program. There is a lot that is required of you. You have to put the work in to do it, but it is an all-encompassing program. There are so many resources for you,” Johnson says. “I don’t think that I would have been as successful if it wasn’t as all-wraparound as it is.” Johnson says that in the years since
then, her life has turned around completely. “Before the program, I had a lot of chaos in my life, and you know, chaos continues to happen because I have children, but they give you tools that I continue to use today that I learned as a student,” she says. Through the program, she says she’s found confidence and good friends. And now, as an instructor, she likes getting to offer that same transformation to others. “I think my favorite part of my job is getting to see the change in the lives that I get to pour into every day. I get to see the little victories turn into big victories, and it makes what I do worth it,” she says. If you want to volunteer with Pawsperity, you have to be 18 years old, but there are lots of different ways to help. They have a speakers bureau to give talks about Pawsperity and other volunteers who do tours at the facility. There’s also the usual paperwork and various seasonal projects throughout the year. Businesses can also schedule a group volunteering session for employees. For more information on applying to the program or volunteering, visit pawsperity.org