For weeks, Antone White has circulated a petition among District residents and elected officials demanding that young people under the age of 16 be able to receive stable employment throughout the year and access to comprehensive vocational programs.
The petition, titled “Youth Empowerment – Jobs for Youth/Crime Prevention/Community Safety,” calls for the modification of existing legislation so that young people can be further exposed to employment opportunities. In the petition, White also issues a call for comprehensive youth empowerment programs that promote responsible decision-making.
As of Jan. 21, White has collected more than 600 signatures. However, he told The Informer that neither Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) nor any member of the D.C. Council responded to his call for youth job opportunities and empowerment programs.
While White, founder and CEO of Our City DC, acknowledged the existence of ongoing youth mentorship programs, and even commended the Marion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program as a time-tested community resource, he said that young people deserve a solution that’s much more intentional and available throughout the calendar year.
“The majority of the youngsters tell me it’s about the jobs,” White said. “The city comes with violence interruption but they need something else for them. It’s not that they want to beef with each other. If they had constant employment, they would be straight,” he added. “The D.C. summer job program is short term, nothing but two months, and people have no direction of how to sign up for it.”
A Question of the Budget
The Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP), now 45 years in existence, will start on June 24. The online portal opens on Tuesday, Jan. 23 at noon. Eligible youth can apply up until March 6.
In commemoration of MBSYEP’s 45th anniversary, the Bowser administration increased the award amount for the Mayor’s Opportunity Scholarship, given to MBSYEP alumni who are pursuing post-secondary education, occupational skills training, or military service, from $2,000 to $4,500.
Five students who are pursuing a career in the healthcare industry will also each receive a $20,000 college scholarship.
On Monday, the D.C. Department of Employment Services, DC Health, and Howard University Hospital (HUH) commemorated the official launch of MBSYEP’s 2024 application period at HU’s Centers of Excellence. Speakers at the event included HU Chief Medical Officer Dr. Roger A. Mitchell, HUH CEO Anita L.A. Jenkins.
Jeffrey Wright, award-winning actor, D.C. native and star of the new film “American Fiction,” tuned in virtually to reflect on his MBSYEP experience, while Bowser and DOES Director Dr. Unique Morris-Hughes made remarks.
Mychael Brown, a senior at School Without Walls in Northwest, later spoke about his participation in the Young Doctors Project, a healthcare career pathways program for young boys. Shortly after, he and a peer demonstrated how to perform CPR.
This year, there are 12,000 summer slots available for District youth between the ages of 14 and 24. That’s a decline from 14,000 last year when D.C. was receiving COVID-related federal funding. Up to 1,400 young people across the District receive compensation for year-round participation in DOES programming, Morris-Hughes told The Informer.
More than 700 public and private partners, including the Young Doctors Project, are serving as employer host sites. Young Doctors Project, in its tenth year as a DOES partner, hosts weekend classes during the school year and up to six weeks of summer programming.
While the oldest cohorts of MBSYEP youths across the city will make up to $17.50 per hour this summer, their younger counterparts, designated as work readiness trainees, will make between $6.25 per hour and $9 per hour.
For Morris-Hughes, what summer employment assignments lack in substantial income for young adults has more than enough of a foundation for future career success.
“The opportunities that we provide are life-changing,” Morris-Hughes said on Monday. “Retail is good but [with summer youth employment], you get exposure and mentorship and you’re not able to work under the age of 16.
Bowser later declined to delve into what efforts could be made to expand the reach and impact of year-round workforce development opportunities, telling The Informer that such decisions depend on the Office of the Chief Financial Officer’s February economic forecast and her administration’s other budgetary priorities.
A Paid Opportunity of a Lifetime for One Aspiring Medical Professional
Mychael, who aspires to be a cardiologist, is in his third year at the Young Doctors Project.
In 2021, Mychael followed in his older brother’s footsteps when he first entered the program. Under the tutelage of Young Doctors Project co-founder and director Dr. Malcolm H. Woodland and several others, Mychael and his peers have been delving into preventative medicine, mental health and the intricacies of health issues that are prevalent in underserved communities.
The young men also learn how to perform blood pressure screenings, obesity measurements, vision exams, mental evaluations, along with other basic health screenings. Those lessons snowball into a service-learning component of the program that allows participants to conduct free community health clinics under the supervision of staff doctors.
During the school year, Mychael and his peers are in the throes of these lessons for up to four hours on Saturdays. During the summer, they stay on campus at HU while enrolled in the four-week Summer Health Academy.
Mychael, 17, said what he learned at Young Doctors Project came into use last spring when he, while on the way to school, used CPR on a man experiencing a medical emergency at Foggy Bottom-GWU Metro Station in Northwest.
The best part of Young Doctors Project, Mychael told The Informer, involved learning material that puts him on the right track toward achieving his career goals. He also relished the prospect of bucking stereotypes of young Black men while earning a few dollars.
“Learning about anatomy, biology and common illnesses gives me an entryway to medicine,” Mychael said. “I can pay for lunch when I go to school. I also have spending money on gifts. That’s what I use it for but I know people use it for better things.”
