Detroit summer employment program helps grow city's young talent
(CBS DETROIT) — Since 2015, a citywide program in Detroit has been connecting thousands of teens and young adults with summer employment opportunities. Grow Detroit's Young Talent trains and employs young adults between the ages of 14 and 24.
"It teaches me what I need to do in a work environment," said Wayne State University student Jayden Allen. "And it's also assisting me with honing my skills."
Allen dreams of becoming an AI engineer. He's also a participant in this year's GDYT program, spending his second summer at DTE creating a mock website and learning that a career in IT isn't limited to programming and coding; it's also an opportunity to serve the community. Allen says this kind of summer employment is a dream come true.
"I saw everything around my environment, and I decided [I] want to be better than my environment," he said.
This year, GDYT is celebrating 10 years of programming. Over the course of the decade, almost 80,000 young people have participated in the program's summer career exploration, with a record 8,643 youth jobs offered this summer alone.
"It really helps me understand what DTE has to offer for everyone," Todd Fleury said.
Fleury, a senior UI/UX designer at DTE and Allen's mentor, says it's all in the name as he an hundreds of others work together to grow Detroit's young talent.
"The hope for Jayden that I have is that he succeeds and continues to learn," Fleury said.
