Politics
More Than 27,000 Young People Taking Part in One Summer Chicago Employment Program
Brandie Knazze, commissioner of the Department of Family and Support Services, and Mayor Brandon Johnson announce an expansion of the One Summer Chicago program at Dyett High School on July 11, 2024. (WTTW News)
More than 27,000 Chicago teens and young adults are getting paid to work this summer through an expansion of the city’s One Summer Chicago job program.
Mayor Brandon Johnson and city officials announced Thursday that 27,140 Chicagoans between the ages of 14-24 — an increase of about 2,400 people over last year — have signed up and begun employment and internship opportunities since the annual summer work program kicked off late last month.
“Our young people are exploring career opportunities and engaging with professionals in the public and private sectors from very diverse industries,” Brandie Knazze, commissioner of the Department of Family and Support Services, said during a news conference Thursday at Dyett High School.
Knazze said that among those working in the city's youth employment program are 100 people who are training to become peacekeepers through a pilot program with GoodKidsMadCity and the Alternative Schools Network.
Through that program, youth are trained to de-escalate conflicts in their communities through communication skills, conflict resolution, event planning, deep canvassing and relationship building.
“We want to heal our communities and provide other youth like us with the opportunities to push peace and make our communities safer,” Reece Johnson, a youth leader with GoodKidsMadCity, said in a statement. “We look forward to working with Mayor Johnson and Alders to uplift youth-led violence prevention.”
Teens and young adults ages 16-24 will earn $15.80/hour working in One Summer Chicago jobs, while teens ages 14-15 will receive a $450 stipend for the summer.
According to Knazze, One Summer Chicago has also placed 86 interns in 15 different city departments and 28 aldermanic offices.
Another 75 youth are working in the Chicago Police Department’s youth advisory council and 29 others are working in the city’s infrastructure program, working alongside Chicago’s Department of Transportation and the Department of Streets and Sanitation.
Johnson said his administration allocated an additional $11 million for the One Summer Chicago program in his budget last year, adding that more teens and youth working summer jobs will help reduce violence in the city.
“Our commitment to youth jobs is not just about giving our young people a paycheck; it’s about giving them a purpose,” Johnson said in a statement. “We know that youth employment compliments our community safety strategy, and we are proud that we were able to successfully expand the program again this summer. We are committed to continuing to invest in our young people so that every teenager in Chicago has the opportunity to earn money, develop their skills, and build meaningful careers in our city.”
Contact Matt Masterson: @ByMattMasterson | [email protected] | (773) 509-5431
