UCSF Companions with San Francisco to Present Job Coaching for Native Residents 

CityBuild Academy graduate Xavier Hagwood is working on the construction of the new building for the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. Photo by Susan Merrell

As part of its commitment to promoting local economic opportunity, UC San Francisco is working with the City and County of San Francisco to train residents to build the new research and administration building at the Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG).

UCSF is donating up to $ 1.1 million to CityBuild Academy – a construction training run by the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development – which offers a five-week course to equip local job seekers with the skills they need to be a pre-apprentice to become workers on the $ 271 million construction project who may help out with work, ironwork, carpentry, drywall, glazing, and painting.

The new building will provide a home for researchers whose work has a particular focus on the health problems of disadvantaged communities both domestically and internationally, including basic researchers, clinicians and public health researchers who are also studying HIV, tuberculosis and malaria as a traumatic brain injury , Women’s health, innovation for digital health justice and transformative services for people who have experienced violence and trauma.

With the construction of the new research building, UCSF will voluntarily seek to meet San Francisco’s goal of ensuring that 30 percent of construction jobs are local residents recruited by Mission Hiring Hall, a local organization that leads industry initiatives for CityBuild.

“With this professional development program and our broader goal of hiring at least 30 percent of our local construction workers, we are strengthening the economic opportunities UCSF offers the community, increasing employment opportunities for San Francisco residents, and engaging our local unions to innovate, multiply partnerships that benefit both the university and the community, ”said UCSF Chancellor Sam Hawgood, MBBS. “We are proud to partner with the city on this professional education program and to demonstrate our commitment to the people who live in the communities where this great hospital operates.”

The first cohort of 15 trainees started on April 5th and a second cohort is to follow later this year. The training academy is located in the UCSF Mission Center Building on 15th Street and Harrison Street.

Graduates receive safety and hazardous waste certificates and can complete trade union training in the construction industry. The training program pays union fees and purchases the tools they need to successfully begin their careers in the industry.

“After more than a year of economic troubles from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is time to get more Franciscans back to work,” said San Francisco Mayor, London N. Breed. “I am grateful to UCSF for helping launch careers in construction for San Franciscans, especially those from historically deprived neighborhoods. UCSF and the city work together to promote economic opportunities and inclusion for all. ”

I am grateful to UCSF for helping launch careers in construction for San Franciscans, especially those from historically deprived neighborhoods. UCSF and the city work together to promote economic opportunities and inclusion for all.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed

Ken Nim, CityBuild Director, added, “We have worked with UCSF for many years to recruit and train local residents to build projects on UCSF sites. We are pleased about the additional investments of the UCSF in the training of the residents for the construction of their latest research building at the ZSFG. ”

Construction on the building began in August and is expected to be completed in two years. The five-story facility is being built on 23rd Street between Vermont and Utah in a former surface parking lot. It will house state-of-the-art research, teaching and administration space under a long-term lease agreement with the city and county of San Francisco.

As general contractor, The Boldt Company will hire some employees directly and oversee subcontractors who hire employees for certain aspects of the project.

“It is in our best interests to support and end these training programs as our industry relies on a steady pool of newcomers ready to work,” said Geoffrey Nelson, director of project development at Boldt in San Francisco. “We are committed to the success of UCSF’s 30 percent local hiring target and a business that will benefit the neighborhoods surrounding this important community building project.”

The construction training partnership builds on UCSF’s almost 150-year affiliation with the city, through which UCSF doctors and other health professionals provide most of the medical services and related health care at ZSFG. Research in the new building will help the ZSFG, which serves the city’s most vulnerable populations, perform excellently. It is also an important part of the UCSF Anchor Institution Initiative, which leverages the university’s economic and human resources to address issues such as income inequalities that affect the long-term health of the community.

“This building is already an example of UCSF’s partnership with the city, and it is now providing important new employment opportunities for the local community,” said Francesca Vega, Vice Chancellor for Community and Government Relations at UCSF. “This is an important step in helping some of the San Franciscans affected by the pandemic get back to work and is part of our ongoing commitment to improving the health and well-being of our city.”

About UCSF: The University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) is entirely focused on health sciences and is dedicated to promoting global health through advanced biomedical research, higher education in life sciences and health professions, and excellent patient care. It includes UCSF Health, which includes three high-ranking hospitals, as well as affiliates across the Bay Area.