Workforce Development has Heart
An Inspirational Story of Growth and Connection at OWL360
Hello! I’m Sonia Frojen, OWL360’s Workforce Development Program Lead. The past year in this current role has taught me so much about how young adults show up for learning, especially when it’s THEIR choice.
In the summer 2025 ‘Earn to Learn’ class, which is a 45-hour career exploration and ‘Adulting 101’ class, students showed up on night one with quiet hesitation. As we met each week to check-in and discuss the week’s topics (career exploration and research, resume writing, interview skills, mindfulness, financial literacy, resource navigation, education resources and more), students started opening up during discussions about work/life balance, the stresses of housing insecurity, mental health challenges, and the group became more than a class - it became a cohesive space where support, acceptance and connection were present.
Community members visited the class each week to bring career-related topics, and host discussions. The young adults were actively building connections in their community through this experience.
A few end of class survey answers when asked “What is the most important thing you learned about yourself in this class?”
- “My voice does have power, maybe even more.”
- "That I am stronger than I think I am."
- "The things I really want to do are realistic"
- "That I don't have to live with stress constantly on my back, and that finding the right workspace can even make work seem enjoyable."
What comes after Earn to Learn?
The OWL360 ‘Level Up’ Internship Program is a 90-hour opportunity for Earn to Learn graduates, and allows interns to earn $1000. OWL360 has three interns actively interning in the first half of 2026.
One intern is learning about floral design, another intern is working at a local furniture maker's woodshop, and another intern is a teacher's aide for the Clemente Course humanities 3-credit class. All of the current interns had identified areas of interest during their 45-hour Earn to Learn for a possible career pathway. As interns, they are making further community connections for work-related learning, building executive function skills by scheduling and attending their weekly shifts, as well as building a mentorship relationship with a local business owner that can guide and support them as young adults after their 90-hour internship ends.
When asked how the OWL360 workforce development program has helped, two current interns said:
“I signed up for Earn To Learn when I had been unsure what the best next step to take in my life would be, OWL360 has helped me grow confidence in myself and the plans I have for the future, as well as given me opportunities in our community I had not considered or known about. I have recently started my Level Up internship and am very grateful for the opportunity. I have learned so much in the last several months and met so many amazing people in the process. I'm very glad that I signed up, this program has been exactly what I needed and greatly increased my hope!”
“Earn to Learn and Level Up have helped connect me to resources and opportunities in Jefferson County, as well as helped me meet some very cool people! Especially since I moved here relatively recently, OWL360 programs have really helped me build a social life and a sense of community & belonging since the move.”
OWL360 offers Earn to Learn twice a year (January through April) and (late July through mid-November). The next cohort begins late July and will take place at The Nest in Uptown Port Townsend. The Level Up Internship is designed around each student, and set up on a case-by-case basis depending on each intern’s ideas. If you are a local business interested in hosting a 90 hour internship, please reach out to us!
To apply for the Earn to Learn and Level Up programs, a student needs to be between 17 and 26 years old, and live in East Jefferson County.To apply for the Earn to Learn and Level Up programs, a student needs to be between 17 and 26 years old, and live in East Jefferson County.
For more information contact Sonia Frojen (soniaf@owl360.org) or click the button below.
