Two weeks ago, the Tongue Point Job Corps Center in Astoria was a vibrant campus, home to about 350 students from across the country learning a variety of trades, including painting, welding and seamanship.
But by Thursday, the tenor had shifted dramatically. The U.S. Department of Labor, headed by former Oregon representative Lori Chavez-DeRemer, announced last week it intended to abruptly pause operations at 99 Job Corps centers, including Tongue Point.
Shayla DuBeau, left, as she picks up her son Logan from Tongue Point Job Corps Center in Astoria, Ore. on June 5, 2025. Logan is one of many students that have left since the federal Department of Labor announced the closing of the center.
Joni Land / OPB
That led to fears that the sudden closure could leave thousands of Job Corps students with no job prospects and, in many cases, with no place to live. In addition to the more than 300 students, Tongue Point provides housing for the families of 14 staff members, who now face eviction.
Founded in 1964, Job Corps provides trade skills to young adults ages 16 to 24, in an effort to reduce youth unemployment at no cost to students. The center at Tongue Point opened the following year and is the only center with a maritime program.
On May 29, Labor Secretary Chavez-DeRemer said in a written statement the pausing of Job Corps stemmed from “serious incident reports” at Job Corps sites, along with a high cost and low graduation rate.
“We remain committed to ensuring all participants are supported through this transition and connected with the resources they need to succeed as we evaluate the program’s possibilities,” Chavez-DeRemer said.
But interviews with Tongue Point staff and students show a chaotic and confusing shutdown process. Within days of announcing the closure, the Department of Labor began asking students to leave. Tongue Point’s Center Director Mac McGoldrick said the department has provided little to no help for students since announcing the closures.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said the decision to close Job Corps centers stemmed from low performance results and high costs. Tongue Point Job Corps staff dispute those figures.
Jacquelyn Martin / AP
“We are in a liminal state right now,” McGoldrick said. “We’re asked to send [students] to their home of record and, in some cases, students don’t really have a home of record.”
Tongue Point staff members also argue the department’s data on Job Corps’ graduation rate and cost is inaccurate and outdated. Representatives from the Department of Labor did not respond to OPB’s request for comment.
‘It just really hurts a lot’
Even after a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order Wednesday to pause the shutdown, the vast majority of students at Tongue Point had already left. Students could be seen Thursday carrying all of their belongings to the center’s front gate.
Shayla DuBeau made the four-hour drive from northern Washington with her children to pick up her son Logan, who was unable to graduate from his welding program on time. Tongue Point’s closure has altered the trajectory of her son’s future and her family’s as well, she said.
“If he was able to graduate, get a certificate, he would be able to come home, get a job and have his own place,” DuBeau said. “It definitely puts a financial burden on our family.”
Logan DuBeau loads his luggage outside Tongue Point Job Corps Center in Astoria, Ore. on June 5, 2025. A welding student, he said Job Corps turned his life around, but he chose to leave before graduating.
Joni Land / OPB
As of Thursday, many students still don’t know where they’ll live. Tongue Point’s staff has been coordinating with local churches and action groups to see who can provide temporary housing for students.
Twenty-one-year-old Kovi Stevens, who is enrolled in the painting program, said she struggled with homelessness for years before joining the Job Corps and that she worries about ending up on the streets again.
She’s one of only a couple students remaining in her hall and plans to stay as long as she can. She said students used to laugh and joke with each other, but now they only talk about their plans: where they’ll go and which programs they’ll join. It’s a gloomy atmosphere.
“This is the first place that I really thought of as a home and watching all the people that I’ve grown close to just slowly leave — it just really hurts a lot,” Stevens said. “It’s not normal.”
Kovi Stevens (left) and Lydia Johnston outside Tongue Point Job Corps Center in Astoria, Ore. on June 5, 2025. Both face an uncertain future as the federal government plans to close the center.
Joni Land / OPB
Many of Job Corps’ students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Kim Pingle, who teaches math at Tongue Point, said many students arrive with little high school experience and that it provides training they can’t access anywhere else.
Job Corps is typically a two-year program, but because of the sudden closure many students attempted to finish weeks worth of school in a matter of days so they could graduate on time.
“We figured out which ones could get out the fastest and then which ones needed more time,” Pingle said.
But many did not have the resources or the time to graduate, which is needed to obtain valuable apprenticeship positions. Multiple students said that if they can’t return to Tongue Point to graduate, their career plans essentially start from scratch.
Community rallies around Tongue Point
It’s been a whirlwind week for Mac McGoldrick. He said he spent most of his Wednesday filling out 170 termination letters for his staff, only to find out hours later that a judge had issued a temporary restraining order and halted the closure.
By that time, many students had already left campus. He said he’s trying to figure out how and if students will be able to return while Tongue Point remains open.
At the front gate of Tongue Point Job Corps Center, people have donated empty luggage for students who are moving out. Many students arrived with no luggage and few personal belongings.
Joni Land / OPB
Later Wednesday night, he spoke before an emergency meeting of the Astoria City Council, where dozens filed in to show their support for the center.
“We don’t just train students, we help power the local economy,” McGoldrick told the audience. “This closure will have a disproportionate economic impact on our region.”
Leaders from the local city council, school district and the local hospital all spoke out against the closure. In a community struggling for housing and trained workers, the loss of Tongue Point is seen as a massive blow to the region.
“They are doing much more than just gaining jobs and resources,” Columbia Memorial Hospital CEO Erik Thorsen said. “They are actually involved in our community, so we pledge our support. We will do whatever it takes to help keep the program open.”
A hearing on the future of Job Corps will be held on June 17. Yet, for most students, waiting to see what happens with the program isn’t an option — the instability is too great.
“I just didn’t want to deal with all the mental chaos that’s been going on down there,” said former student Logan DuBeau, loading his luggage into his mother’s car. “Just really wish none of this was happening.”
Watch to learn more about Tongue Point Job Corps in this “Oregon Field Guide” story:
