February 8, 2011
Tipawan Reed, President of OAI, gives a presentation on "Forgotten Communities: Environmental Justice and Building a Green Society"
at the Good Jobs Green Jobs National Conference in Washington, D.C.
View the Slide Show Presentation:
OAI Presentation
January, 2011 -
TIFWorks Training Grant for Hospitality

The City of Chicago’s Department of Housing and Economic Development has selected OAI to receive $368,000 in TIFWorks funds. OAI along with training provider, Creative Hospitality Associates, will provide alcohol awareness and food safety training to restaurants and bars in eight TIFWorks zones. This sectoral approach, the first of it's kind, offers two training courses - a four hour Fundamental of Alcohol Safety Training (includes BASSET certification) to 1,764 workers and a 15 hour Food Safety and Sanitation Training (includes city and state certifications) to 542 workers.

The training will occur between February and October this year.

For more information contact Creative Hospitality Associates directly.
October 2010-OAI KC Website
Our new oaikc.org website is up! Please visit the site to learn more about OAI programs in the Kansas City metropolitan area. www.oaikc.org
June 2010—Eliminate the Digital Divide Grant Award
OAI was awarded $43,000 from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's Eliminate the Digital Divide Program to provide high-speed Internet access and computer skills training for under-served communities. With our partners, Literacy Chicago, Thresholds, Haymarket Center and the Department of Women's Justice Services, Single Room Housing Assistance Corporation, et al. we will provide computer skills training to over 300 individuals in need of basic computer literacy skills necessary to meet educational and employment related goals.
June 1, 2010
OAI was awarded $100,000 from the Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity to continue its Job Training and Economic Development training program (JTED). Since 2000, OAI has used JTED funding to provide job-related training to over 600 lower wage/lower skilled workers, helping them either retain their jobs or move up the career ladder.
May 26, 2010--$15,000 Grant Awarded
OAI was awarded $15,000 from the Chicago Tribune Charities-Holiday Campaign, a fund of the McCormick Foundation to support the Minority Worker Training Program-Chicago’s basic carpentry training component.
March 30, 2010
Mural by, Anthony Prado, a truly dedicated fire-fighter at Marina Fire Department, CA. He is a nephew of one of our very active board members, Cheryl Barsanti.
See: Mural
Note: Mural opens in a new window with information about the artist.
Mural is scaled for your browser, but if saved will be at full size of 3872 X 2592 pixels.
March 15,2010
Kansas City Metropolitan Brownfields Job Training Program Graduates First Training Class
See Press Release
Chicago (February 24, 2010)
Veolia Environmental Services North America Corp (VESNA), on behalf of the Veolia Environment (VE) foundation, today awarded a $33,000 grant to OAI, Inc. to be used to purchase a 15-passenger van for OAI's Chicago Southland Youthbuld (CSY) pre-employment education and training program housed in Harvey, Ill.
See Press Release
Literacy Chicago Collaboration
OAI is pleased to provide support to Literacy Chicago, a stellar not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the literacy skills of Chicago-area adults and families, by providing no-cost classroom space for GED and ESL classes at our 180 North Wabash location
July 30, 2009
$499,947 Chicago EPA Grant Awarded

A 2-year, $499,947 grant has been awarded to OAI by the USEPA to fund training for 80 Illinois residents living in Brownfields-impacted communities in southern Cook County in hazardous waste & worker safety training as well as Environmental Remediation or Weatherization training.
See Press Release.
July 2009
Nine OAI graduates completed OAI's first Energy Conservation and Efficiency training course offered through W&M Insulation. All nine graduates were hired by local insulation and construction contractors.

June 12, 2009 --- $700,000 Grant Awarded
On June 12, 2009 the Wal-Mart Foundation in conjunction with the US Conference of Mayors awarded a two-year, $700,000 Green Jobs Training Initiative grant to OAI, Inc. to administer in support of expansion plans for the Chicago Department of Environment’s Greencorps Chicago green jobs training and work program. Press Release

June 12, 2009 --- $675,000 Grant Awarded
On June 12, 2009 the U.S. Department of Labor announced that OAI, Inc. was awarded a first year grant of $675,000 to start its new Chicago Southland YouthBuild program targeting at-risk youth in some of Chicago’s poorest south suburban communities. Press Release

May 2009
OAI's Chicago Minority Worker Training Program completed its second cycle of training for the 2008-2009 grant year with 18 graduates.
February 25, 2009 -- $30,000 Grant Awarded
OAI receives $30,000 renewal grant from the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation to help support a full-time Academic and Life Skills Training Manager to oversee the academic, computer, and life skills elements of OAI job training programs.
December 2008
OAI's Chicago Minority Worker Training Program completed its first cycle of training for the 2008-2009 grant year with 14 graduates.
OAI congratulates 29 graduates from the City of Chicago's Greencorps Program and OAI's EPA Brownfields Job Training Program.
September, 2007 -- $750,000 Grant Awarded
OAI receives $750,000 two-year grant to expand employment opportunities for women and minorities in the construction industry.
For details, go to OAI PACT Web Site