Our
Mission
"MYEP provides Stamford's youth with the necessary job readiness and leadership skills needed to compete in the global workforce."
What does the MYEP do?
Jobs are difficult for anyone to get, but for a high school student, working in the corporate sector seems like a far-fetched dream. However, the Mayor’s Youth Employment Program makes that dream a reality for junior and senior high school students from the City of Stamford. The students get access to paid employment in the corporate, private, or non-profit sector. In addition to the job, the students get guidance and training from government employees. The training starts before the job, as students must complete an application and go through a job interview for what is usually their first time. Once they are accepted, students learn about the many aspects of being a good worker, including: professionalism, time management, communication, teamwork, adaptability, and much more. The Mayor’s Youth Employment Program provides students with a “real world” perspective right before they go into college, and helps improve their skills to make them better workers both for the job they receive from the program and any future jobs they may have.
The Program helps students gain skills such as:
Soft Skills for Success:
Communication, Enthusiasm and Attitude, Teamwork, Networking, Problem Solving & Critical Thinking, and Professionalism.
Your first week at work:
Preparing for your working day, understanding the importance of dress in the office, office behavior, and working with others.
Money Management:
Understanding basic financial tools and Budgeting.
Resume & Cover Letter Development and Completion:
Tips for a good cover letter and resume. Each applicant is expected to complete a resume and cover letter
140 hours of real world work experience.
Twenty-four hours of leadership workshop:
Participants will develop and execute assignments with the intention of implementing one or all of these projects within the City of Stamford.
Interview Skills and Job Searches Resources:
Introduction of key techniques to help find and secure your first job and how to use social media to your advantage.
A Little History About Us
The Mayor’s Youth Employment Program started in 2011 with thirty high school students working as interns. The program has grown in many ways, and grew so quickly that it had to be taken from a three-year deal down to two years in 2012, due to a great increase in the number of applicants. This program, run through the city of Stamford has gained the trust of corporations around Stamford, and more companies have been willing to take an intern each year. The program now holds 75 interns, over a one hundred percent increase from its first year. Not only that, but the group of students from the program have begun to represent Stamford. At first, the program was just looking to hire any type of student, but now, the ethnicity breakdown of the students represents that of Stamford. In addition to looking more like its work setting, the program continues to make small improvements each year, as 2014 was the first year in which the program hired two college students who graduated from the program to help run the leadership classes. The program started hoping it could give high school students a chance to join the Stamford work force, and now it is doing just that with more and more companies helping them achieve that goal.
​