Dear Friends and Family,

For more than 50 years, the Urban Affairs Coalition (UAC) has led the initiative to provide summer employment for teens and young adults in Philadelphia. We are fully committed to helping prepare our region’s future workforce and providing meaningful opportunities to our community’s youth, especially after such a difficult year.

This summer, youth employment will not only provide young people with work, but also will play a critical role in preventing community violence. Research shows that summer jobs are an important part of reducing violence and crime among youth, which can result in safer communities, improved academic outcomes, and direct economic benefits for youth, families, and neighborhoods. These employment opportunities truly have the potential to change the lives of our city’s youth.

While 2020 was a tumultuous year, last summer’s WorkReady program was still able to employ 6,000 teens and young adults. Philadelphia acted as the first city in the nation to quickly pivot in response to the pandemic and provide alternate summer experiences for our city’s youth. This was all possible with the help of the Summer Youth Employment Cabinet, formed by UAC in partnership with the Philadelphia Youth Network to drive funds and support the city-wide effort for the Full Employment of Philadelphia’s youth. I’ve had the honor of co-chairing this effort for the last five years alongside Jim Dever, Market President at Bank of America.

Our city-wide goal for summer 2021 is to employ 8,000 teens and young adults. In order to fully support our region’s youth this summer, the program’s $2 million gap must be filled. This will only be possible with your help.

As a valuable member and supporter of our community, I encourage you to visit workready.org/donate to learn more about how to join UAC in supporting summer jobs for Philadelphia’s youth. Employers can contact us directly to hire and host an intern this summer or volunteer to serve on a career panel.

I believe that, together, we can reach our fundraising and employment goals and I look forward to seeing another successful summer.

 

Sharmain Matlock-Turner

President/CEO
Sharmain@uac.org