General Information

Congress authorized and funded the National Guard Bureau to enter into agreements with the nation's governors to operate youth programs beginning in Fiscal Year 1993. The Oregon National Guard (ORNG) began its first pilot iteration of the Youth Challenge Program (OYCP) in September 1994. In January of 1999, OYCP became an official ChalleNGe Program. The goals of this program are to provide young people with values, self-esteem skills, education, and to succeed as students and young adults. OYCP is designed as a intervention program rather than punitive. It is an "at-risk" youth program which targets drug free, unemployed/underemployed male and female school dropouts ages 16 to 18. The program's mission is to provide work skills and alternative learning opportunities to meet the unique individual needs of students in order to increase positive behavioral and academic skills. The student is better prepared for transition to and subsequent success in his or her next learning or work environment by promoting learning, goal setting, and self image building.

This 17 and  month program consists of three distinct phases. First is a 2 week Pre-Challenge Phase. This is the trial period in which each Corpsmember (Cadet) is given a chance to prove his or her commitment to the program. A cut is done at the end of this Phase. For those who pass the Pre-Challenge Phase, next comes the 20 week Challenge Residential Phase. Both of these residential phases take place at the Central Oregon Training and Education Facility (COTEF) in Bend, Oregon. The third is the post-residential Mentorship Phase which begins during the residential phase and continues for one year after the cadet successfully completes the residential phase. This is a highly important phase of the program. Please go to the Mentor Page for more mentor information.

The OYCP program is a military style environment. Staff utilize a "Hands off", tough love, caring, disciplined approach to instill values, train, and instruct cadets. Core components consist of citizenship, preparation for the GED or high school completion, work skills, community involvements and projects, health, hygiene, skills, training, leadership, fellowship, and physical fitness. The eligibility/selection criteria for entrance into the program are that the participant must be: a volunteer; within the ages 16-18; a citizen or legal resident of the U.S. and of the State of Oregon; unemployed or underemployed; must not possess felony or capital adjudications / convictions and must have physical capability to complete the program within reasonable accommodations for physical challenges. The staff of the program screen the applications and select those most likely to complete the program. Cadets have two educational options in the program: GED or high school credits and make this choice in the first week that they are enrolled. The critical work ethic portion of the program teaches cadets to accept work assignments which vary in scope and length. During the Residential Phase, cadets are in the classroom for  of each week and doing work projects for the remainder of the week. These assignments are designed to foster initiative, flexibility, creativity, and leadership. These important skills are reinforced so that they are understood and incorporated by the cadets as part of their work ethic no matter what the task. Cadets are exposed to a variety of agencies while working on work projects.