8,157 YOUTH TRAINED AND EMPLOYED DURING SUMMER 2016

Connect Detroit and its partners trained and employed 8,157 Detroit youth during summer 2016, in partnership with 70 community-based organizations. Youth participants engaged in 36 hours of paid employability skills training, before and in conjunction with a 120 hour summer employment experience.

“This year’s program was a great success,” said Dierk Hall, President and CEO of Connect Detroit. “With our community partners, we trained and employed more Detroit youth than at any time in our program’s history.”

Connect Detroit was directly responsible for managing 2,000 youth participants this year. The agency selected employer provider partners through a request-for-proposals process early in 2016. Partners were selected for their access to eligible youth and their commitments to deliver youth development supports. Youth participants were then identified through employer partners, enrolled, oriented, and engaged in the program.
“Our provider partners are the unsung heroes in this work” said Hall. “Without them, none of this would be possible.”

This is the eighth year that Connect Detroit has operated its summer youth employment program. In 2016, the program was operated collaboratively with the City of Detroit and Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation. The program has trained and employed more than 21,000 youth since it began in 2009.

Program funding was provided to Connect Detroit by a variety of corporate and foundation partners. These included the WK Kellogg Foundation, the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, Mrs. Marjorie S. Fisher, Bank of America Foundation, DTE Energy Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and others.

For more information on the Grow Detroit’s Young Talent program, please contact Senior Program Director Shuna Hayward at shuna@cityconnectdetroit.org.