By Dave Gatton
October 4, 2010

The U.S. Conference of Mayors DollarWise Campaign travelled to Norwalk (CT) September 14 where Mayor Richard Moccia honored a room of over 100 Norwalk volunteers who participated in the mayor's 2010 Summer Youth Employment Program.

The mayor's program was a recipient of the DollarWise Campaign's Summer Youth Innovations Grant given to five cities who had exemplary programs to incorporate financial literacy into their summer youth jobs programs.

Norwalk has administered a summer youth employment program (SYEP) for youth ages 14-18 since 1998. To date, the program has provided employment opportunities for more than 1600 area youth and contributed over 240,000 hours to the Norwalk workforce.

Youth participants are selected through an application and interview process. Once selected, the participants are required to attend a weeklong job etiquette training that will provide them with the basic tools necessary to successfully complete their job assignment.

This year, 175 young people were placed at non-profit agencies and businesses throughout Norwalk for a period of six weeks. The SYEP program provides employment opportunities for young people who may not have the opportunity to seek and secure a job at such an early age. This program also instills work ethics, job readiness and life skills while initiating the groundwork for financial responsibility. For most, this will be their first experience of entering the work force.

In an effort to enhance and enrich the experience, the mayor's program incorporated a financial literacy component as part of each youth's summer job. Over a three week period, youth participate in educational sessions on topics such as Money Management Basics, Income and Expense Management, Budgeting and Planning, and Borrowing Basics. As a part of the DollarWise grant, the city expanded this financial education to parents of the summer youth participating in the program.

“Most of our youth will receive their first paycheck through this program,” said Moccia. “We want to make sure they have the basics to spend and save wisely the money they earn throughout the summer.”

Through the mayor's network of volunteers, every dollar raised goes directly to pay the salary of a young person, providing that youth the opportunity to learn to navigate in a business environment, contribute to the community and earn money. The mayor's office staffs the program as an in-kind service.