Orlando expands youth employment program, where students can make $14 an hour

Orlando Sentinel | By Ryan Gillespie | April 12, 2022

Orlando teens on free and reduced lunch have a chance for employment this summer, which will include receiving a bank account, income of $14 an hour and other financial literacy training.

City officials announced an expansion Tuesday of its Summer Youth Employment Program, which will provide internships for between 300 and 400 students in a variety of industries including summer camps, insurance, retail and hospitality. Officials said they hope it will teach life skills and the value of a dollar, as well as expose students to potential career paths.

Students will be paid $14per hour for 30-hour work weeks by CareerSource Central Florida, which means businesses can have interns at no cost to them, Mayor Buddy Dyer said.

“What a great deal that is,” Dyer said. “We help train the students and you get to take advantage of that now skilled labor.”

A previous iteration of the employment program was specifically for students in the city’s Parramore Kidz Zone programs, but it has since been expanded citywide, for any student between 15 and 19 years old who qualifies for free and reduced lunch.

Willie Hobdy, 25, was once one of those teens. At 16, he was hired as an assistant basketball coach with the city through the summer employment program. He’s since graduated from Florida A&M University, with hopes of returning to its law school later this year. He said he learned working with kids as an intern that they can control their environment and stay out of trouble.

“Advocating on how they behave and what they do after school was a great experience for me,” Hobdy said.

Besides a paycheck — for many, likely their first, city officials said — students will get bank accounts , job experience for resumes, as well as financial training around budgeting and saving for college or a future home purchase, said Lysa Barbano, market president for VyStar Credit Union, which will train the students.

Berta Garcia, director of Blue Swan Boulders climbing gym, said her company hired two high school seniors a year ago from Parramore Kidz Zone, and they’ve learned skills like problem-solving, customer service and risk management.

“What’s more important is that I think both of them have found community here as well,” she said.

City Commissioner Regina Hill said Orlando is looking for more companies to participate to broaden opportunities for the interns.

“It’s not just small businesses; we’re looking for those that might be corporations or office skillsets. … It can be an individual — a photographer, a videographer that might need some youth to intern,” she said. “We want to try to match these kids up with their future endeavors, so when they show up at work they cannot just see themselves at work, but 10 years down the road.”

Businesses can apply to participate at this link. Students can apply here.