Letter from the Director
“Summer afternoon, summer afternoon, two of the most beautiful words in the English language.” So wrote Emily Dickenson, and I couldn’t agree more. With summer 2011 behind us now, we are taking some time to reflect on the season. For many of us, summer in New England signals visions of lakeside cabins, sea coast vacations, mountain bikes, backyard cookouts and lush gardens. The growing season is just 90 days stretching from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and Yankees are industrious planters, cultivators and harvesters of local food and flowers.
Wish it were so for our teenagers – summer is a short, yet powerful growing season for them, too. Summer jobs combining work and learning are critical to healthy development and preparing our kids for adulthood. When you think about it, there are only four summers in a working-age, teenage life – and each one matters. Between the 8th grade and 12th grade graduation, young people can be engaged in enriched summer programs, or lose ground and return to school suffering the consequences of the well documented “summer learning loss.”
We know a lot about the value of summertime learning, but what are we as a nation doing? The U.S. Department of Labor reported that unemployment among youth in 2010 increased by 571,000 between April and July. At the time, the federal government failed to close the gap between what we know and what we do and zeroed out funds for summer youth employment programs. This left millions of kids idle for the summer. The youth development field is discouraged. Just two summers ago, after the absence of large scale federally funded summer programs for nearly a decade, the ARRA provided millions in funding and the field rose to the occasion providing jobs and paychecks for kids. In our study "Innovating Under Pressure: The Story of the 2009 Recovery Act Summer Youth Employment Initiative: Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis & Marion County, Phoenix & Maricopa County," prepared for USDOL, we showcased the capacity and lessons learned in these cities. Together, they invested $37 million and served 16,650 young people “quickly and wisely with transparency and accountability” as President Obama requested. The ramp up and delivery was impressive and the great beneficiaries were the young people who got a boost both financially and educationally.
We are hopeful that the summer youth employment program suggested by the President in his September 8, 2011 address to Congress comes to fruition. Meantime, as we think about part of what worked in summer of 2011, we see that new funding partnerships played a key role in providing the innovation and leadership for summer youth employment, especially business and philanthropy complementing the commitment of Mayors and other committed citizens around the country.
We are shining a light on one such effort funded by the Walmart Foundation.
“Walmart’s $5 million in grants to municipalities and nonprofits in Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York City and Washington, D.C. will support youth employment programs. As a result of this support, the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Urban Alliance, Latin American Youth Center, Robert R. McCormick Foundation, Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City and City Connect Detroit will grant access to job opportunities and skills training to more than 5,000 youth.” (http://walmartstores.com/pressroom/news/10626.aspx). We are excited about this venture and optimistic that the emerging lessons will provide a platform for further investment by Walmart and other philanthropic, business and government partnerships. As Walmart’s evaluation and learning partner for this initiative, we are charged with responsibility to produce, not only a report for the Trustees, but also a Technical Assistance Guide and RFP to assist with future efforts.
Our own history with summer and year round youth programs dates back to our founding. Indeed, I remember seeing my colleague Andy Hahn (now Director of the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy) on the Today Show in 1983 talking about the power and potential of summer enrichment to ameliorate summer learning loss. I joined him at Brandeis shortly after that show and we have been relentless champions for summer ever since.
As we all go back to school this fall, let’s appreciate our jumpstart for learning and make it so for all our nation’s young people. Please join us in doing what we can to support summer programs for our nation’s youth.
Susan P. Curnan
Professor and Director
Center for Youth and Communities