US News: Why Summer Jobs Offer Year-Round Benefits to Miami Youth
With Alberto M. Carvalho, superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools
Students in the Miami-Dade County Public School system enjoy the benefits of being part of a multicultural, ethnically diverse community. But they also face the challenge of living in an area of high socio-economic needs. More than 73 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, signifying that their families are living at or below the poverty line.
Making sure that no child arrives in the classroom hungry is critical. But the challenge goes beyond the cafeteria. According to a recent survey, 43 percent of Americans who are raised in lower-income households will stay in this economic bracket throughout adulthood; 70 percent will never earn beyond middle-income.
This is a hard reality for Miami and for many other cities. But there are ways to create more opportunities for Miami's teenagers and young adults to get on a pathway to a good job. Educators and business leaders must join forces to offer youth a track to a more promising future.
In Miami, local businesses are opening their doors to summer youth employment. It's a win-win scenario: Students gain skills they need and real-life experience in jobs that matter to our economy, and businesses can foster those skills to grow.
Summer employment offers more than a paycheck; it can open doors to future year-round employment opportunities, provide hands-on experience and allow students to work alongside professional mentors. The benefits are far from seasonal: Teenagers who work during the summer are 86 percent more likely to be employed the following year. This begins a young person's lifelong process of increasing earning potential and supporting their ability to climb the economic ladder.
JPMorgan Chase sees tremendous value in these opportunities, which is why the firm has already committed nearly $6 million to help build summer employment programs across the country, including in Miami, where students work in industries such as health care, tech and logistics – some of the fastest growing careers in the city. In collaboration with the Miami-Dade County Public School System, 167 students were extended paid internships in 2015 – the highest number of participants since the program began in 2014 – giving them a chance to develop valuable skills and explore various career choices. They also received college credit to get them on the path to success beyond graduation.
By making it a priority to create summer employment opportunities, we are teaching today's teens how to be the workforce leaders of tomorrow. They are immersing themselves in the work that impacts our society and supports our economy. This means that when they are ready to enter the workplace in a full-time capacity, these students will come armed with on-the-job training and experience that is highly valued by employers.
That is key to these partnership programs in Miami-Dade and across the country. As these students are building skill sets and resumes, they are helping to grow the very businesses that serve them and their families. We must continue to have conversations with the private sector to learn about their current needs and future goals. Based on this, we will better understand what is required to drive and expand the workforce in Miami-Dade. In doing so, we can continue to tailor summer youth employment positions that are just as beneficial for the employee as they are for the employer.
The benefits of summer employment opportunities expand beyond the immediate needs of students to hold a summer job that can help pay for things they need. By offering them a chance to develop soft skills like interviewing techniques, gain technical knowledge and contribute to a society they will someday lead, we collectively develop a stronger workforce and a pathway to create economic opportunity.