Season of Success for Youth

In a time of uncharted territory, this summer employU has continued to adjust the way our staff, clients, and business partners work together. employU has also implemented new health safety policies that include social distancing, face coverings, and sanitization for the protection of clients, staff, and business partners. These adjustments and policies have made it possible for forward movement with our clients on the path towards success.

Part of what makes employU’s services successful is the out-of-the-box methods to deliver services to clients. In this, our Transition Youth Program developed the Community Internship Project model that has been widely acknowledged as a successful model to foster lasting business partnerships and employment opportunities for customers.employU’s industry-based work experience programs are unique in design offering internship experiences with a variety of local business partners within the same industry throughout Florida.

These summer-based programs are designed to add to the future talent pipeline by addressing the skills and talent gap many businesses are currently facing. At the same time, clients gain the work experience and knowledge needed to begin a successful career path. Our first special project began in Brevard County with the Brevard Internship in Construction Knowledge(BRICK) program.

Now in its third year, the BRICK program has provided 7,151 hours of work-based learning experience opportunities for students. With such success, the program has been replicated in other areas with a great need for developing an experienced workforce pipeline, like Jacksonville, now in its second year of the program, and the new pilot program in Volusia County called VOICE – Volusia Organizing Internships in Construction Employment.

With employU’s new health safety procedures in place, clients were able to participate in numerous on-the-job trainings. VOICE is a program created in response to the high demand for skilled workers in the construction trades within Volusia County.  The program gives students the opportunity to receive on-the-job training that can lead to high paying careers with little to no student debt. This helps to fill this demand in the short and long term by leading to an influx of skilled potential employees.

Hospitality is another growing industry in Volusia County. Just as VOICE aims to fill the demand in construction and trades, HOPE(Hospitality Opportunities Promoting Employment) aims to do the same for the hospitality industry. Through this program, both youth and adult clients can gain experience through a variety of fields such as culinary, reception, customer service, housekeeping, and maintenance.

The venues where these work-based learning experiences take place are just as varied as the positions available. Venues range from full-service hotels to sporting arenas. This provides the unique opportunity for clients to gain new skills and become well-versed in many aspects of the hospitality industry as they work multiple on-the-job trainings within the program. Though permanent employment is possible through each of employU’sindustry-specific programs, HOPE saw remarkable success with two on-the-job trainings leading to permanent hires in its first year.

Though this summer was one of adjustment and unprecedented times, employU is proud to see how our clients have continued to strive to reach their goals. Through the partnership of our business partners and staff, we have been able to continue serving our clients and work towards a successful future together. More information on VOICE and HOPE can be found in an upcoming documentary featuring the programs. In the meantime, a trailer of the documentaries is available here.