Business

Detroit youth summer job program heats up with $150,000 donation

MICHIGAN CHRONICLE — Even a polar vortex could not prevent mayor Mike Duggan, business and community leaders, employers, philanthropic organizations, and Detroit youth from convening at DTE Energy headquarters.

Published

5 years ago

February 6, 2019

Oakland Post

By Branden Hunter

Even a polar vortex could not prevent mayor Mike Duggan, business and community leaders, employers, philanthropic organizations, and Detroit youth from convening at DTE Energy headquarters Thursday morning to officially launch the application period for Grow Detroit’s Young Talent (GDYT) 2019, the city’s summer youth employment program.

Now in its 5th year, GDYT is the lead coordinator, fundraiser and marketer for the city’s efforts to provide summer employment opportunities for youth ages 14-24. Prior to GDYT, approximately 2,500 Detroit youth would have summer jobs each year through a series of smaller independent programs. In 2018, 8,210 youth were employed at 669 work sites through 233 employers for six weeks.

Youth looking for summer employment and organizations interested in participating should go to www.GDYT.org through March 15th to complete the application. Employers interested in becoming a sponsor or providing summer work experiences for Detroit youth may register at the GDYT website also.

“We have to keep our talent in the city,” said Mayor Duggan. “I talk to too many Detroiters in their 20s that said, ‘coming up in Detroit, my goal was to get out.’ We need to have a situation where they’re saying, ‘my goal is to stay here and make it better.’ And I think GDTY is a big part in saying to our young people that the community here values you, supports your career, and wants you to stay.”

Mayor Duggan was joined at the kickoff breakfast at DTE Energy by many of the program’s key supporters and partners, including Dave Meador, DTE Energy Vice Chairman and Chief Administrative Officer; September Hargrove, VP Global Philanthropy at JPMorgan Chase; Faye Nelson, Michigan Director for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation; Kylee Mitchell Wells, Executive Director of Ballmer Group; and Nicole Sherard-Freeman, Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation (DESC) President and CEO.

“DTE continues to increase participation in Grow Detroit’s Young Talent because young people who have real-world work experience grow into adults with more career options. That’s especially important for the energy industry, where 50 percent of employees are eligible to retire in the next five years,” said Meador. “DTE and the DTE Energy Foundation have provided more than 3,000 youth with meaningful work experiences. Our summer interns also make our company better, bringing new ideas and energy. I strongly encourage fellow business leaders to participate in the program; together we can provide even more opportunities for youth in Detroit.”

The city of Detroit’s summer youth employment program also kicked off its fifth year with a $150,000 boost from the Marjorie Fisher Fund, which is a “dollar-for-dollar” matching grant from new individuals, small businesses, and community supporters.

“We’re starting to give our young Detroiters the type of opportunities they expect,” Duggan added. “It wasn’t something that city government could have done by ourselves. I thank all the folks who have contributed so significantly along the way.”

The importance of having a summer job was highlighted by Sherard-Freeman.

“We are now seeing sustained growth in opportunity in Detroit, with increases in economic investment and decreases in unemployment” she said. “In order for those positives to be further sustained, we need the next generation of Detroit talent to be ready to take those opportunities. Having a summer job and being able to demonstrate experience is a key step to advancing on a career path along with showing an employer that you have the skills and the work ethic they need.”

Benefits for participating in GDYT extends beyond just a paycheck. A study concluded GDYT is improving educational outcomes for Detroit’s youth and the program will introduce or enhance several initiatives for the 2019 GDYT program, including Increasing the focus on financial literacy, a major issue in a city that has fewer bank accounts per capita than any other major U.S. city. Tyrone Bean said ever since he joined GDYT at age 14, his experience has been amazing.

“They taught me how to save money, budget, and the importance of a bank account,” said Bean. “Ever since I learned that, I’ve saved my money, bought a Mac Book, and to this day, I’m still making revenue off the decision I made in 2015.”

April, applicant contact, and work-readiness training sessions continue. In May, the start of employer match and interview process begins, and job-readiness training and orientation sessions start in June. July 8, work experience begins for Detroit’s youth.

This article originally appeared in the Michigan Chronicle.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 8 – 14, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May May 8 – 14, 2024

Published

4 days ago

May 10, 2024

Oakland Post

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Bay Area

Mayor Breed Proposes Waiving City Fees for Night Markets, Block Parties, Farmers’ Markets, Other Outdoor Community Events

Mayor London N. Breed introduced legislation on April 26 to encourage and expand outdoor community events. The first will waive City fees for certain events, making them less costly to produce. The second will simplify the health permitting for special event food vendors through the creation of an annual permit. Both pieces of legislation are part of the Mayor’s broader initiative to bring vibrancy and entertainment to San Francisco’s public right of ways and spaces.

Published

1 week ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Outdoor community events are integral to San Francisco’s vibrant culture and sense of community. iStock image.

Mayor’s Press Office

Mayor London N. Breed introduced legislation on April 26 to encourage and expand outdoor community events.

The first will waive City fees for certain events, making them less costly to produce. The second will simplify the health permitting for special event food vendors through the creation of an annual permit. Both pieces of legislation are part of the Mayor’s broader initiative to bring vibrancy and entertainment to San Francisco’s public right of ways and spaces.

Outdoor community events are integral to San Francisco’s vibrant culture and sense of community. These events include night markets, neighborhood block parties and farmers markets, and bolster the City’s economy by supporting local businesses and attracting tourists eager to experience San Francisco’s unique charm and food scene.

They offer residents, workers and visitors, opportunities to engage with local artists, musicians, and food vendors while enjoying the San Francisco’s stunning outdoor spaces and commercial corridors.

The legislation will allow for more and new community gatherings and for local food vendors to benefit from the City’s revitalization.

“San Francisco is alive when our streets are filled with festivals, markets, and community events,” said Breed. “As a city we can cut fees and streamline rules so our communities can bring joy and excitement into our streets and help revitalize San Francisco.”

Fee Waiver Legislation

The events that can take advantage of the new fee waivers are those that are free and open to the public, occupy three or fewer city blocks, take place between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., and have the appropriate permitting from the ISCOTT and the Entertainment Commission.

The applicant must be a San Francisco based non-profit, small business, Community Benefit District, Business Improvement District, or a neighborhood or merchant association. Fees eligible for waiver include any application, permit, and inspection/staffing fees from San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Department of Public Health, Fire Department, Entertainment Commission, and Police Department.

Currently, it can cost roughly anywhere between $500-$10,000 to obtain permits for organized events or fairs, depending on its size and scope. Organizations and businesses are limited to a maximum of 12 events in one calendar year for which they can receive these fee waivers.

Food Vendor Streamlining Legislation

The second piece of legislation introduced will help special event food vendors easily participate in multiple events throughout the year with a new, cost-effective annual food permit. Food vendors who participate in multiple events at multiple locations throughout the year will no longer need to obtain a separate permit for each event. Instead, special event food vendors will be able to apply and pay for a single annual permit all at once.

“Many successful food businesses either begin as pop-up vendors or participate in special events to grow their business,” says Katy Tang, Director of the Office of Small Business. “Giving them the option for an annual special event food permit saves them time and money.”

Currently, food vendors are required to get a Temporary Food Facility (TFF) permit from the Department of Public Health (DPH) in order to participate in a special event, among permits from other departments.

Currently, each special event requires a new permit from DPH ranging from $124-$244, depending on the type of food being prepared and sold. Last year, DPH issued over 1,500 individual TFF permits. With the new annual permit, food vendors selling at more than four to six events each year will benefit from hundreds of dollars in savings and time saved from fewer bureaucratic processes.

“This legislation is a step in the right direction to make it easier for food vendors like me to participate in citywide events,” said Dontaye Ball, owner of Gumbo Social. “It saves on time, money and makes it more effective. It also creates a level of equity.”

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Bay Area

Faces Around the Bay: Sidney Carey

Sidney Carey was born in Dallas, Texas. He moved with his family to West Oakland as a baby. His sister is deceased; one brother lives in Oakland. Carey was the Choir Director at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church for 18 years.

Published

1 week ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Courtesy of Sidney Lane.

By Barbara Fluhrer

Sidney Carey was born in Dallas, Texas. He moved with his family to West Oakland as a baby. His sister is deceased; one brother lives in Oakland.

Carey was the Choir Director at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church for 18 years.

He graduated from McClymonds High with a scholarship in cosmetology and was the first African American to complete a nine-month course at the first Black Beauty School in Oakland: Charm Beauty College.

He earned his License, and then attended U.C., earning a secondary teaching credential. With his Instructors License, he went on to teach at Laney College, San Mateo College, Skyline and Universal Beauty College in Pinole, among others.

Carey was the first African American hair stylist at Joseph and I. Magnin department store in Oakland and in San Francisco, where he managed the hair stylist department, Shear Heaven.

In 2009, he quit teaching and was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure. He was 60 and “too old for a heart transplant”. His doctors at California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) went to court and fought successfully for his right to receive a transplant. One day, he received a call from CPMC, “Be here in one hour.” He underwent a transplant with a heart from a 25-year- old man in Vienna, Austria

Two years later, Carey resumed teaching at Laney College, finally retiring in 2012.

Now, he’s slowed down and comfortable in a Senior Residence in Berkeley, but still manages to fit his 6/4” frame in his 2002 Toyota and drive to family gatherings in Oakland and San Leandro and an occasional Four Seasons Arts concert.

He does his own shopping and cooking and uses Para Transit to keep constant doctor appointments while keeping up with anti-rejection meds. He often travels with doctors as a model of a successful heart-transplant plant recipient: 14 years.

Carey says, “I’m blessed” and, to the youth, “Don’t give up on your dreams!”