We are facing a terrible crisis in education due to the pandemic, and in the midst this, new opportunities can emerge.
While our eighth graders long for a return to in-person school and apprenticeships, recent data shows they are learning important career skills in our online programs (see our charts below). And new virtual capabilities offer us ways to continue to support our alumni to build their career skills even as they attend over 30 different Boston high schools.
Thanks to funding from partners, Youthworks and the Boston Private Industry Council, we are launching a new paid internship program for 40 ninth grade Apprentice alums. The program, LaunchPlus, will offer 40 hours over 10 weeks of virtual career skills, careers exploration, and weekly small group meetings with our staff. Youth will earn $700 for completing weekly “deliverables” and the program will culminate in youth completing an online job application for the City of Boston’s Success Link summer job program. Our goal: have all students capable and ready for a virtual summer job.
With few career programs and job opportunities for this age group, LaunchPlus extends our reach and fills a critical gap during the transition to high school–already a difficult period for young people.
Our program services now span grade seven to grade nine and we are growing a career pipeline to nurture a talented, diverse future workforce in Boston.
We are so grateful for the support all of our partners, individuals, and foundations have provided to help us reach more young people.
