Many of Georgia’s students have finished the school year, and the City of Atlanta is eager to sign them up for summer youth employment.
On Wednesday, business and non-profit leaders joined Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens in Midtown’s Accenture Innovation Hub for the third annual Summer Youth Employment Program Signing Day.
Local employers signed 5,000 students and young people up for seasonal jobs this year, with positions in tech, business and other popular sectors. Participants range from 14 to 24 years old and get paid a minimum of $15 per hour.
Dickens says the program not only keeps young people out of trouble while they’re out of school but also gives them the chance to get job experience.
He was not shy of using himself as an example of what youths having part-time jobs can help to accomplish.
“I worked at Burger King, and Kroger and then I became mayor,” Dickens said to a roar of laughter from the audience.
Cassipea Stith, a 2023 worker in the Mayor’s Office for Constituent Services, hopes more cities follow Atlanta’s lead in creating opportunities for students like her.
“It made me really value my voice and what I can offer and want to do more in the community, even at the age that I am,” said Stith, who plans to attend the Chicago-Kent College of Law in the fall.
Chef Simone Byron, founder of The Navigate Program, which trains young professionals in the culinary arts, says that she welcomes the opportunity to mentor young workers.
“They bring a sense of community, they bring a vibrance, they bring an excitement, they bring energy,” she said. “And that in any workplace has been very, very positive for us.”
