Summer Job Connection Kick Off to Put nearly 600 Youth to Work
- Date June 4th, 2019
- Media Contact Doug Tobin
- e-mail [email protected]
- Contact phone (813) 397-2054
Summer Job Connection kick off to put nearly 600 youth to work
~Youth to get paired up with employers and learn valuable job skills~
TAMPA, FL – CareerSource Tampa Bay will kick off their Summer Job Connection program with a large youth summit where 578 youth turned out on Tuesday. Youth who have already applied and been accepted into the program gathered at Tampa Hotel on Tuesday June 4th to kick off the summer job program. “It’s truly rewarding to be a part of an amazing initiative that is changing lives of the youth in Hillsborough County,” Jody Toner who is the Director of the Summer Job Connection program.
“One summer can make a difference and our Summer Job Connection could assist up to 650 youth by putting them to work this summer. I’m thrilled with the community support and how the program turned out, we had more than 1,000 youth apply and over 110 employers.” CareerSource Tampa Bay is also partnering with Hillsborough County businesses and governmental agencies.
More than 100 employers signed up for the program including the Hillsborough County School District, the County’s largest employer. Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners also approved funding to help support the program. “We are going to grow this program and help with our youth in Hillsborough County,” said CSTB CEO John Flanagan. “We all remember our first job and for hundreds of youth this will be their first job. We will give them some valuable life skills during the program, something they can take with them for the rest of their lives.”
Youth hired for the program will be paired up with career counselors who will work with them on a variety of job seeking skills, including updating their resume, appearance for job, job interview skills, life budgeting and career development. Participants will be provided a six-week paid work experience opportunity in a targeted industry. Youth participating in the program will be paid $11.00 per hour and work a maximum of 24-hours per week.
The program will run from June 10 to July 19, 2019. “I’ve seen this program succeed in other parts of the country,” added Flanagan. “I think Tampa and Hillsborough County are in a position to get our youth excited about work and this is a great program to point them in the right direction.” Registration for the event is closed for this year but CSTB hopes to grow the program in the next few years.
About CareerSource Tampa Bay
CareerSource Tampa Bay works with businesses and candidates to leverage their training, retraining, and competitive opportunities in the workforce. CareerSource Tampa Bay serves more than 54,600 job candidates annually. CareerSource Tampa Bay, with our five career centers is the single largest source of job candidates in the region from entry-level to executive-level candidates.