Tag Archives: youth

Apr 25 2013

SummerWorks Internships for 2013

SummerWorks has as its goal to provide internships for 1000 youth this summer, 2013. In its 4th year, the program has evolved into one of the premier youth workforce development programs in the Portland Metro Area.

Here is  what you need to know if you are a youth seeking to apply:

  • You must live in Multnomah or Washington County.
  • You must be between 16-21.
  • Internships last 180 hours, schedules to be determined with employer.
  • Internships are paid.
  • Fill out this application. Applicants are screened according to the online application and selected candidates will be invited to an orientation to learn more about the program and to determine if the candidate is eligible.
  • Not all applicants are accepted into the program. Need and work-readiness both contribute to an applicant’s chances of being placed in an internship.

My workplace has hosted Summer Works (formerly Summer Connect) interns for the last three years. I can tell you that the interns are very well prepared and supported in their jobs. At Multnomah County, they are employed in a wide variety of our programs, from administrative assistants, to SUN school helpers, to library aids, to working in the assessors  office. We really enjoy having the students around!

SummerWorks | Worksystems.

Recipients of 2012 Youth Action Grants
Jan 26 2013

Youth Community Action Grants 2013

(image is from www.oregonyouthlink.org)

Youth under age 21 with a great idea to build community in Portland, Oregon may now apply for the 2013 Youth Community Action Grants. These grants are available for community-based projects that support and enhance the vision of Our Bill of Rights: Children + Youth.   This document was adopted by youth in 2005 2006 and adopted by both the Portland City Council (2006) and Multnomah County Commission (2007) to help leaders understand the priorities of constituents under the age of 21.  Youth Action Grants were created to help put Our Bill of Rights: Children and Youth into action. Activities should support at least one of the articles of the Bill of Rights, should involve as many youth and community members as possible, and also result in strong partnerships between youth and adults.

Here is a great recap of the process and award ceremony from one of last year’s Youth Action Grant Recipients, the Oregon PartnershipYouth Advisory Council. Mayor Sam Adams created a video highlighting the 2012 winners.

Grants will be given in amounts up to $1,000 until a total of $10,000 has been granted.  Applications are due, via email, by February 21, 2013.

Questions can be sent to youthactiongrants.sy@pcc.edu or 971-722-4361.

A series of application workshops will be held to help grant applicants learn more about what makes a successful grant application.

WORKSHOP 1:

  • Place: Portland Community College Southeast Campus
  • 2305 SE 82nd and Division, Portland, OR 97216
  • Room: Tabor 137
  • Date: Friday, January 25, 2013
  • Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

WORKSHOP 2:

  • Place: Portland Community College Cascade Campus
  • 705 N Killingsworth, Portland, OR 97217
  • Room: Terrell Hall 124
  • Date: Saturday, February 2, 2013
  • Time: 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

WORKSHOP 3:

  • Place: Portland Community College Sylvania Campus
  • 12000 SW 49th Ave., Portland, OR 97219
  • Room: CC 204B
  • Date: Thursday, February 7, 2013
  • Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00pm

Application packet (pdf)

Youth having fun at CEC Leadership Conference
Jan 10 2013

2013 Annual César E. Chávez Leadership Conference

The annual César E. Chávez Leadership Conference is coming up on March 8, 2013 at Western Oregon University. Along with a day packed with speakers, workshops and inspiration, participants are eligible to apply for contests and scholarships.

Mission of the Leadership Conference: To instill in our Latino(a) youth the value of education, which nurtures mind, body and spirit in order to develop a social consciousness that empowers them as leaders for social justice and civic responsibility in the greater community.

The CECLC is the largest high school student event for Latino students in Oregon. Last year, in excess of 1,500 students, presenters, exhibitors, school staff, volunteers and invited guests attended leadership workshops, college/university fair and listened to distinguished keynote speakers. 65 high schools from Northwest Oregon attend the annual César E. Chávez Student Leadership conference. During the last 22 years, at least 20,000 high school students have been part of this event and, as such have come to know and identify with César E. Chávez and his legacy

Students need to see their counselors at participating schools to register.  A $35 registration fee is due to the conference, although some schools are able to cover the cost or provide scholarships for students in need.  Hurry, because counselors need to turn in information this week.

The conference also sponsors an Art, Essay and Poetry Contest for attendees. Submissions are due January 16.  Winners receive $100-$200.

Students can also apply for aCésar E. Chávez Leadership Conference College Scholarship.  High School Seniors of Latino(a) heritage are invited to apply.  Applications are due January 16, 2013

Sally Ride
Nov 30 2012

WISH 2013: Women in STEM High School Aerospace Scholars For High School Junior Girls

NASA is announcing a unique opportunity for young women who are juniors in high school with an interest in science. WISH: Women in STEM High School Aerospace scholars will become a part of a nation-wide on-line learning community and compete for a chance to spend a summer at the Johnson Space Center working with NASA engineers.

Applications– which include a letter requesting nomination from your State Senator or Representative– will be accepted through January 3.  SGirls who are chosen to participate in this NASA program will complete a series of distance-learning lessons on past, present and future space explorations.  Approximately 40 girls will be selected from this cohort for a 6 day summer experience at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

The program is free and the lessons– which are aligned to state education standards–are meant to inspire girls to study science, technology and engineering.  The young women will meet and interact with an on-line community of leading female STEM professionals as well as collaborate with girls  from around the country with similar interests in science and technology.

NASA has a great website for students. Here are some more NASA links for girls interested in careers at NASA:

WISH:Women in STEM High School Aerospace Scholars | WISH: Women in STEM High School Aerospace Scholars

24554720
Nov 25 2012

Tour Mercedes Benz Technology Center with iUrban Youth Academy December 1

Our friends at iUrban Youth Academy are putting together a new opportunity –behind the scenes site tours of tech companies for teens. First up, on December 1,  is a tour of the Mercedes Benz Beaverton technology center. Sound good? Here’s more:

The iUrban Teen Tech Tours is a program developed for teens to gain exposure to the technology industry.  This will occur through a series of tours, events and presentations coordinated between iUrban Teen Tech Academy (www.iurbantech.com), and University of Portland Operations Management Association (UPOMA) as a follow-up program to the iUrban Teen Tech Summits.  The Teen Tech Tour will include a half-day event where students will tour a company and get a chance to observe industry leading processes and top-of-the-line technology.

Tours are limited to 35 students.

Register online.

Meet 7:30 a.m. at University of Portland Commons Building:

5000 N Willamette Blvd
Portland, OR 97217

Return 1:30 p.m.

code in
Nov 21 2012

Google Code-in starts Monday November 26, 2012

Check out this fun contest for teens 13 – 17 to complete a bunch of challenges and online tasks. Run by our friends at Google so you know its going to be fun!

The Google Code-in contest starts Monday, November 26. In this annual contest, pre-university students (13-17 years old) work on fun online tasks—such as documentation, marketing outreach, software coding, user experience research—for 10 different open source organizations. The end result? Students get to learn about and create open source software that people all over the world can use. Grand prize winners will get to visit the Googleplex in Mountain View, Calif.

My guess is that it will involve heavy use of Google tools like Google + and Hang Outs.  I would suggest you get your accounts up and running over the weekend so you’re ready!

More information available on  Google+, the Google blog post, and the program site.

Get in at the start of it and you won’t miss the first Google hang-out on the Code-in, November 26 at 2:00 PST.

Web_StateFarm-YAB_250
Sep 19 2012

State Farm Youth Advisory Board: Applications due October 1, 2012

Here is your chance to give voice to youth issues on a national level, as a member of the State Farm Youth Advisory Board. The YAB (Yabbies) oversees the distribution of $5 million in service-learning grants to communities through out the US. They are actively recruiting new members.

The YAB is one of the nation’s most exciting opportunities for youth empowerment and development. The board is comprised of 30 youth from around the country who serve as equal members on the board. The board is given responsibility over $5 million dollars to grant service-learning and community impact projects that seek to solve important domestic issues.  Board Members are selected through a competitive application process, and all applications are read and reviewed by at least two members of an internal review team at Corporate.

To serve on the board, you must agree to commit to 3 meetings annually in Bloomington, Indiana. Board members’ travel, food and lodging expenses are all paid for. Only 30 youth serve on the board so selection is highly competitive.

Apply by October 1, 2012.

Image by A. Davey from album PFLAG II on Flickr.com
Sep 18 2012

2012 Youth Mini-Grant Program for GSAs: up to $250

This just in from the Oregon Safe Schools and Community Coalition. Mini-grants up to $250 available for GSAs for youth lead, youth driven projects. Applications are reviewed monthly on the 4th Tuesday:

PFLAG Portland, PFLAG Portland Black Chapter, and Oregon Safe Schools and Communities Coalition announce their 2012 Youth Mini-Grant Program.

This program funds small projects sponsored by Gay/Straight Alliances or other nonprofit, youth oriented organizations.

General Eligibility Requirements:

The project must be planned, directed and implemented by youth.

GSA’s must have a school or organization sponsor to receive funds. Sponsors may include a school’s student fund or Parent/Teacher Organizations with non-profit status.

The organization must operate in the tri-county region of Portland, limited to Washington, Multnomah and Clackamas counties. Preference will be given to projects in Portland.

Projects must be completed during the school year for which funds are sought. Funds awarded for the 2011/2012 grant cycle must be used during the 2011/2012 school year.

Upon completion the project will submit a Grant Evaluation form.

Grant Awards:

PFLAG Portland and OSSCC seek to fund small projects. Mini-grants will be limited to $250.00 per organization per year.

Approval Process:

A selection committee composed of OSSCC and PFLAG will review mini-grant applications each month at the PFLAG Portland Board of Directors meeting on the 4th Tuesday of each month. Organizations will be notified of the approval or denial of an application within 5 business days of the Board of Directors meeting.

Application:

Download, complete, and mail the application form to the address specified therein.

For Questions or More Information:

Call or e-mail PFLAG or OSSCC

PFLAG pflagpdx@gmail.com or 503-232-7676

OSSCC info@oregonsafeschools.org or 503-984-4865

job_corps
Aug 2 2012

Job Corps: Free education and job training for low income youth

Job Corps is a free education and job training program run by the US Department of Labor. Low-income youth 16 – 24 can earn their high school diploma or GED and receive job training in a variety of disciplines from automotive collision repair to culinary arts to Certified Nurses Assistant. Programs vary by site.

There are six Job Corps sites in Oregon: Angell Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center, Partners in Vocational Opportunity Training (PIVOT) Job Corps Center, Springdale Job Corps Center, Timber Lake Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center, Tongue Point Job Corps Center, Wolf Creek Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center. Most of the centers are residential, although PIVOT (in Portland)  is non-residential and some of the center have a commuter option.

When I was at the Women in Trades Fair in May, working with some Cleveland High School girls who were teaching robotics, a group from the Wolf Creek center took our workshop and blew all our other participants out of the water. Compared to the other workshop groups, these girls were the fastest learners, the most confident, and had built and dismantled a chasse in half the time all the other groups took to put two wheels on.  Enjoy these success stories, including an Idaho Court of Appeals Judge who got his GED at Job Corps.

A friend of mine reports that her son, who was coasting for quite a while, has blossomed in the Forestry program at Wolf Creek, responding well to the structure and rigor of the program. Each site is run differently, but most include Student Government, Clubs, Committees and recreational opportunities for students. There are strict rules with regard to conduct with a zero tolerance policy for drug and alcohol use.

Information for Students

Information for Parents

Job Corps flyer (pdf)

Y.E.S. Info for Young Women

 

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Jun 2 2012

Student Alliance Project Summer Program

So that summer internship hasn’t materialized yet, and the possibility of a summer job seems to be slipping away, how are you going to stay busy? The Student Alliance Project Summer Program sounds like a great way to keep active and meet new and interesting people (and get your mom off your back for lazing around all summer . . . er . . ahem . . .) You’ll also work on some of those critical leadership skills that can help you accomplish lots of good stuff, including public speaking,  working as a team, and thinking about college. The program is for youth 14-23 and takes place between July 16 and August 31 with a one-day orientation in June.

According to their website, the Student Alliance Project 

 is a youth-led collaboration to cultivate multicultural young leaders in Oregon and Southwest Washington equipped to become our communities’ and country’s next college graduates, public policy advocates, community organizers, entrepreneurs and mentors.

Looking at their pictures and videos on the site, I see a group of young people who want to grow as leaders and strengthen their community by exploring the region, learning about the world,  listening and laughing together. This group emerged out of the youth crew working on the documentary film Papers: Stories of Undocumented Youth. They come from diverse backgrounds and want to give voice to their thoughts and beliefs in a supportive and inspiring atmosphere.  In this video they talk about where they are from:

The summer program is 8 weeks long and FREE.

They meet 3 days a week, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (starting at the fairly reasonable hour of 10:00 a.m.) and move throughout the Portland and Vancouver area. Students are asked to commit to a minimum of 3 days and can do the whole 24 if they wish.  Those who complete at least 12 days will get a free bus pass.

The 8-week itinerary includes weeks devoted to exploring the city, delving into the arts, and learning how to start your own business. The last two weeks focus on acquiring the skills necessary to be a youth community organizer.

Sign up on their website. The program starts July 16 and runs through August 31.