The Summer Youth program reaches out to economically disadvantaged and physically challenged youth between the ages of 14 and 21 at a critical time in their lives, helping them to stay in school and graduate. Each year, the Summer Youth program offers more youth the advantage of a summertime job. Last year in WNY alone, more than 2,200 young people in rural and urban areas took advantage of the program, providing approximately over 300,000 hours of community service. The program is considered the employer of last resort for many youth participants who are too young for private sector jobs. Young people work in primarily non-profit settings including hospitals, senior centers, day care centers, offices and nursing homes.
Some youth work on beautification projects or participate in academic enrichment programs.
The Balanced Budget Agreement signed last year protected 13 federal programs which included Summer Youth and other job training initiatives. The Appropriations Committee decided to eliminate funding for the Summer Youth program so that it could be applied to other high priority job-related training programs such as Job Corps and Youth Corps. Quinn said he is hopeful that funding will be restored later this year as the federal appropriations process continues throughout the summer months. With so many federal programs that need funding, prioritizing what is important while trying to adhere to the levels set by the balanced budget agreement is often a juggling act. The continuation of funding for Summer Youth is essential to the young people of WNY and vital to many of the Nation's most vulnerable youth, many of whom come from areas with high crime and little exposure to work.