ONE Cedar Valley provides opportunities for all by believing in people.

ONE Cedar Valley is transforming lives by focusing not just on careers, but on the whole person. “Our mission is that we remove barriers to meaningful employment,” said Joy Briscoe, executive director of ONE Cedar Valley. “We are hyper-focused on career readiness, but we do it through four core programs that really support the full person.”

Those programs include The Hub, which brings service providers together to build a work-ready community; The Road Home, a 15-step life skills course; the popular SHIPHT Youth Academy, focused on career and technical education for teens; and a development center offering scholarships, resume help, and expungement clinics.

David Lupembe, a former SHIPHT participant, is one of many success stories. Originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, David moved to Iowa in 2018 with his family and joined SHIPHT in high school. “We had to do some work, talent stuff, and get hands-on experience and get paid for it,” he said. 

David used his momentum and applied his experiences to receive a degree in cyber security from Hawkeye Community College in 2024 and is now a security analyst at CBE Companies in Cedar Falls. But it wasn’t just the job training that made a difference.

“It was not only on the job side of things,” David said. “People came in and talked about life in general—emotionally, how you handle yourself. It made me good as a person in general.”

That focus on the full person is at the core of ONE Cedar Valley’s model. “It’s not just about the job you’re doing,” David said. “They want you to succeed. When someone believes in you, it just clicks something in your mind.”

Critical to the organization’s success has been the leadership and support of the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa. “The support has been priceless,” said Joy. “I don’t know if we’d be here without them. They didn’t just give money, they shared their power and said, ‘We trust you. Walk alongside us.’ That made others willing to walk with us too.”

With over 400 students served through SHIPHT over five years and 24 families supported through The Hub in 2024, ONE Cedar Valley continues to shape a more equitable and prepared workforce. “Success is about how a person’s life changes,” said Joy. “That’s the data that matters most.”