TeenQuest – a pre-employment and leadership training program that prepares young people for success in the 21st-century workplace – has released its 2019-20 schedule. The first session will be held Sept. 16 to Oct. 17 and is open to all high school students ages 14-19 in Genesee County.
“TeenQuest helps students develop skills that are critical to succeeding in today’s workplace,” said James Avery, director of Education & Training at the Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce, which administers the program. “By the end of the session, they will understand how to not only meet employer expectations, but to exceed them.”
The five-week program focuses on developing the skills to secure and keep a job. Hands-on activities promote key soft skills including communication, goal setting and conflict resolution. Participants also learn how to write resumes, prepare for interviews and open personal checking/savings accounts.
Every April, TeenQuest graduates are invited to the Summer Youth Initiative (SYI) Job Fair to interview with local businesses and organizations for summer employment. In 2019, nearly 400 students secured summer jobs with SYI employers including Flint Children’s Museum, Motherly Intersession and the Flint River Watershed Coalition.
These jobs give teens important real-world experience, according to Lamira Ray, who completed TeenQuest and participated in SYI before graduating from Flint’s Southwestern Academy in 2011.
“Your first job sets you up for future jobs,” said Ray, who now works as a research program coordinator at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. “Employers like to look at your resume and see that you have experience working with people. Thanks to TeenQuest and SYI, I had that.”
TeenQuest is held four times during the school year and is open to students in grades 9-12. The 2019-20 schedule is as follows:
Session 1: Sept. 16-Oct. 17, 2019
- Carman-Ainsworth High School
- Genesee STEM Academy
- Grand Blanc High School
- Hamady High School
- International Academy of Flint
Session 2: Nov. 4-Dec. 5, 2019
- Beecher High School
- Bendle High School
- Carman-Ainsworth Baker Academy
- Kearsley High School
- Linden High School
- Madison Academy
Session 3: Jan. 6-Feb. 6, 2020
- Atherton High School
- Boys & Girls Club
- Clio High School
- Davison High School
- LakeVille High School
- Southwestern Classical Academy
Session 4: Feb. 24-March 27, 2020
- Bentley High School
- Carman-Ainsworth Baker Academy
- Genesee STEM Academy
- Grand Blanc High School
- Hamady High School
- Lake Fenton High School
- Swartz Creek High School
Registration for the first session ends Sept. 16.
For more information, or to enroll, visit www.flintandgenesee.org/teenquest or call (810) 600-1413.
