The Tongue Point Job Corps center is shutting down in the midst of a nationwide “pause” in the Job Corps center operations that will go into effect June 30 and halt operations at all contractor-operated centers.

Astoria’s Tongue Point Job Corps center was one of the first in the nation to open in 1965. Located on a former Navy base, it now hosts 313 students, many of whom live on campus, and 165 staff members.

Mac McGoldrick, the center’s director, said the closure will impact Astoria greatly, as well as tens of thousands of people across the nation. Job Corps serves over 50,000 students annually.

“It doesn’t make a terrible amount of sense,” he said. “From my perspective, the current federal administration is very much vocally committed to improving infrastructure, ‘Make America Great Again,’ apprenticeship placements, skilled tradespeople, unions. But this move doesn’t reflect their vocal commitment to skilled workforce development.

“Job Corps has been around for 61 years, and it has always had strong bipartisan support, and seemingly still does. Senator Merkley and Senator Wyden and Congresswoman Bonamici are all working very hard to try to stop this closure from happening, but we don’t know what exactly the future holds.”

According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Labor, the decision, which followed an internal review of the program’s outcome and structure, was in alignment with President Donald Trump’s 2026 fiscal year budget proposal and “reflects the Administration’s commitment to ensure federal workforce investments deliver meaningful results for both students and taxpayers.”

The U.S. Department of Labor said that the Job Corps program had faced significant financial challenges under its current structure of operations, and that it has been operating under a deficit projected to reach $213 million this fiscal year.

Earlier this year, the department’s Employment and Training Administration released a transparency report citing a 38% graduation rate, compared to a national average of 31% for two-year colleges. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Job Corps graduation rate was 60% nationally.

The average cost per student each year, according to the report, is over $80,000. And the number of Serious Incident Reports — sexual assault and harassment, violence, breaches of safety or security, drug use, and hospital visits — totaled 14,913 nationwide in 2023.

The Management and Training Corporation, the contractor overseeing the Tongue Point Job Corps along with 21 other centers, said in a press release that the report painted a “distorted picture, focusing on high costs and alleged inefficiencies while failing to recognize the program’s undeniable success.”

The release stated that 98% of the incidents were minor, and that Job Corps students enjoy a safer environment than their nonenrolled peers. It also pointed to the Trump Administration’s executive order “Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Jobs of the Future,” and the “Make America Skilled Again” initiative, highlighting a disconnect between the administration’s spoken values and its recent actions.

“Job Corps plays a pivotal role in providing career technical training in industries such as manufacturing, healthcare and construction  — areas vital to America’s economic recovery,” the release read. “…The decision to close Job Corps will deny thousands of students the chance to earn certificates and pursue stable employment.

“Many were just days away from completing their programs and earning certifications to begin their new careers.”

Rep. Bonamici, a Democrat, described news of the closure as “outrageous” in a video taken outside the PIVOT Job Corps center in Portland. She said she represents both PIVOT and the Tongue Point Job Corps and is concerned for their futures.

“These programs are an incredible asset to our community because they’re so important for students who don’t fit into a traditional high school,” Bonamici said. “Job Corps in Astoria is a residential program  — those students may not have homes to go back to. And over the years, I have heard from students in both of these programs about what a difference it makes to them to have a path to an education and a good job.

“It’s the wrong direction for our country. As a member of the Education Committee, my job is to work on having a path for everyone. Not everyone is on the same path, but for many students, Job Corps is the path for them. So I’m outraged about this, and I’m going to do everything I can to fight back.”

A week prior to the news of the closure, Job Corps staff were scrambling to save their centers; Melissa Padgett, a business community liaison and work-based learning specialist at the Tongue Point Job Corps center, issued a call for help to community partners across Clatsop County.

Staff at Clatsop Community College, where 12 Job Corps students take additional classes, are also trying to navigate the issue; students must be fully transitioned from Job Corps by June 6, while classes at the college end on June 12. Some students may have to return to residences much further away from the campus.

“The staff at Job Corps have confirmed that they plan to bus the students up here to be able to complete their classes for spring term, at least before their closure,” said Sarah Geleynse, the interim Dean of Student Success at the college. “…We’re still working right now to try and get information.

“And if the students are going to need to be off-site earlier, we’ll work with them and work with faculty to make sure that students can complete the term, either do their finals remotely or get their final papers in a little bit earlier. Whatever we need to do to help them.”