“If I didn’t have this entrepreneurial opportunity on Myrtle Avenue I would probably be just a kid sitting around on my couch all summer long with nothing to do. I would be without any professional experience. I also wouldn’t have all of the abilities that I now have and can take further when I graduate from high school or even college”.
-Quentin, 16 years old, Clinton Hill Resident & YEMP Participant

Nearly ten years ago we created a program that would impact the lives of local youth living in our Fort Greene & Clinton Hill neighborhoods. We wanted to connect local teens to opportunities in their neighborhood by exposing them to entrepreneurship and summer employment with local business owners.

Since it’s inception, nearly 200 teens have successfully completed our Young Entreprenuer Mentorship Program (YEMP). Overwhelmingly, the summer opportunity serves as a first time job experience for the students, who are all between the ages of 14 and 18. Students commit for 7-weeks, working with business owners for 20 hours per week. They also spend five hours per week in a classroom, learning about entrepreneurship and preparing a business plan for the final class presentation. Their salaries are paid by our organization, so there is no financial burden on businesses to participate.

In their day-to-day work with the business owners, students learn valuable skills related to running a successful business. They are being exposed to new concepts and learning valuable life lessons, including being on time, accountability, problem solving, and communications. They are meeting new friends and earning some money for the summer, in many cases easing the parental financial burden of back-to-school preparations.

At the program’s end, students are sometimes hired by the very businesses where they worked for the summer. It’s a win-win all around. Your support will help us to continue programs like this that benefit the entire community.

Will you make an end-of-the-year contribution to support summer employment opportunities for local youth? DONATE.