CareerSource Tampa Bay Honors Summer Employees

TAMPA, FL — CareerSource Tampa Bay’s Summer Job Connection honored the program’s top participants at a special awards ceremony on Friday, Aug. 27, at the Hyatt House located at 5308 Avion Park in Tampa.

There were three distinct participation models: the first was the Paid Work Experience, which paid $12 per hour for a maximum of 30 hours per week from June 14 to Aug. 6.

The second, Career Exploration, was a weekly incentive-based model which guided the 290 participants who choose this track through a series of modules for four weeks that would assist them in making an informed decision regarding a career path.

The third track, The Young Leaders of Tomorrow, was in its inaugural year and was a six-week workshop-based model that allowed the 16 participants to explore leadership in unique ways.

“I am extremely proud of the 2021 Summer Job Connection,” said CSTB CEO John Flanagan. “My team has done a fantastic job this year with helping the youth of Tampa Bay kick-start their careers and learn more about the skills they need in the professional world. We could not have been successful without the great support of our partners which included private businesses of Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County School District and Hillsborough County Government.”

There were 2,460 youth applicants for the 2021 Summer Job Connection and 142 employer applications. In all, 1,050 positions were filled. Youth hired for the SJC were paired up with career counselors who worked with them on a variety of job-seeking skills, including updating their resume, appearance for the job, interviewing skills, life budgeting and career development.

Host worksites including the Hillsborough County School District, the county’s largest employer. Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners also approved funding to help support the program. Four employer companies and six youth participants received awards this year:

• Articia Pride received the Shining Star Award, recognizing a SJC participant who stood out as a shining star during the program by consistently exceeding expectations.
• Hillsborough County Schools received the Worksite Excellence Award, in recognition of an SJC partner’s dedication to embracing the overarching goal of the program and being a fantastic partner.
• Jaron Paulk received The Beacon of Hope Award, which recognizes an SJC intern that faced personal adversity and hardship during their participation in the program and persevered in the midst of adversity against all odds.
• The Boys and Girls Club was honored with The Making a Difference Award, in recognition of an SJC worksite supervisor who truly poured into an SJC intern, going above and beyond to inspire the youth to excel during their internship

Chelsea Delancy and Bishoi Bagheri received the Leadership Award which recognizes an SJC participant in the Young Leaders of Tomorrow Leadership Academy who consistently exhibited leadership qualities, characteristics and traits. This young adult embodied the essence of leadership through participation in all the individual and team activities, attentively participated during guest speakers and panel presentations. They encouraged and inspired their peers.

Worksite Hero and Shero recognizes an SJC intern, one male, one female, who displayed courage, and excelled during their participation in the Summer Job Connection 2021 program by channeling their inner superhero. These young adults consistently showed up, smiled and supported their colleagues each and every day. The Worksite Hero Award was presented to Leander Harrold and the Worksite Shero Award went to Hedaia Mohmmad.

CSTB hopes to expand the SJC program in 2022. Registration for youth and businesses who want to participate will start in January. Anyone with questions about the program can email Youth Director Jennifer Wilson-Williams at wilsonj@careersourcetampabay.com

This press release was produced by CSTB. The views expressed here are the author's own.