Remix Connection Fair For “Disconnected” Youth Ages 16-24
Added To Priority Children’s 3rd Annual Summer Youth Expo
Priority Children and Congressman Dan Kildee will host the 3rd Annual Summer Youth Expo on Thursday, May 21, 2015 from 3-7pm at the Riverfront Banquet Center in Downtown Flint.
The Summer Youth Expo will help families with children from birth to college age connect with over 70 organizations providing free and low-cost youth-oriented programs, camps, services, job training and educational opportunities for the summer. Parents and children will be able to learn more about each of the opportunities available, and for some, enroll on site. This FREE event will also have music, bounce houses, snacks and prizes.
New For 2015: The ReMix Connection Fair will provides a direct connection to organizations that serve young people ages 16-24 who are at risk of dropping out of school, do not have a diploma/GED, do not have a job and face other barriers to successful entry into adulthood. We will reach out to the 7,500 “disconnected” youth in Genesee County by providing access to housing information, alternative education sites, GED programs, heath care and other supportive services. In addition:
· There will be a mobile Secretary of State office on site to issue identification cards for children of all ages and to provide counseling for individuals needing identification exceptions. ID cards are free for families receiving public assistance (proof of FIP, SDA, SSI or SSDI required) and just $10 each for all others.
· The Department of Treasury will have staff that can assist participants with understanding and addressing driver responsibility fees.
· The Department of Health and Human Services will provide information on benefit eligibility.
· The Genesee County Clerk will be at the event from 3-5pm to assist young people ages 16-24 years old with applying for a FREE copy of their birth certificate. This offer is good for the first 100 qualifying individuals in line.
“We are thrilled to be able to partner with the Secretary of State to make these services more accessible to our families. Many parents don’t know that you can get a state issued ID card for any child, regardless of age. Establishing your child’s identify early can help ensure they have the appropriate documents when applying for school, a job or a loan in the future,” said Amy Krug, Executive Director of Priority Children.
The ReMix Connection Fair is also part of the GradNation Community Summits Initiative, and one of 100 that will be held around the country over the next four years. The Summits are co-sponsored by America’s Promise Alliance as part of the GradNation Campaign, a large and growing movement of dedicated individuals, organizations and communities working together to raise the national high school graduation rate to 90 percent by 2020, with no school graduating fewer than 80 percent of its students on time.
“The progress we are seeing toward the national goal of raising graduation rates is based on communities coming together to support and insist on better outcomes for young people," said John Gomperts, president and CEO, America’s Promise Alliance. “Summits like the event in Flint are rallying points for communities. America's Promise is delighted to support this effort and work with the leaders in Flint and communities across the country to help advance this campaign.”
The premier sponsor of the national GradNation Community Summits campaign is AT&T, whose support is part of AT&T Aspire, the company’s $350 million commitment to graduate more students from high school ready for college and career. Other summit sponsors include the Mike and Gillian Goodrich Foundation, Ford Foundation, DeVry Foundation, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Graduation Alliance, Southwest Airlines, and the Apollo Group. Locally, the Summer Youth Expo and ReMix Connection Fair are also made possible by generous support from the Genesee Intermediate School District, The Whiting Foundation and the Youth Initiative Program Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.
For more information, visit www.prioritychildren.org or call 810-234-5007.
