More than a dozen young women are preparing for the workforce with Skills for Success, the YWCA job-readiness summer camp.
For the past month these 15 to 18-year-olds worked seven hour days, five days each week.
“Most of these girls have never had a job,“ said Workforce Training and Education Director Patricia Adams.
Adams oversees the program, and she said since young people of color often compete with family members for jobs, this experience will give the teens an advantage.
Skills for Success includes workshops, career research, resume building and internship placement at Discovery World or the Urban Ecology Center, where the girls worked twice a week. The program wrapped up with mock interviews from local professionals to help alleviate interview jitters.
While the YMCA is largely recreational, the YWCA focuses on social programs.
“We delve into programs that deal with helping individuals become more self sufficient,” Adams said.
For more information on Skills for Success or other YWCA programs visit ywcasew.org.