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A San Antonio City Council member is proposing a new internship program for youth that are considered at risk. It would potentially build on an already existing city-wide internship initiative.
District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo filed a Council Consideration Request (CCR) this month calling for an “Opportunity Youth Internship Program.” The terms "opportunity youth" and "disconnected youth" refer to people between the ages of 16 and 24 who are not currently connected to school or work.
A CCR is a proposal that city council members can file that could ultimately become city policy if it clears full council approval.
“For disconnected youth who face challenges such as dropping out of school and involvement in the criminal justice system, access to work-ready and occupational skills along with comprehensive supportive systems help reduce recidivism. When there are barriers for youth to legitimate forms of employment illegitimate markets often become an opportunity,” the proposal states.
Proposals like this need the support of four other council members in order to be considered. The signatories of this one include District 3 Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran, District 4 Councilman Edward Mungia, District 6 Councilman Ric Galvan, and District 8 Councilwoman Ivalis Meza Gonzalez.
A 2018 research article in Public Health Reports indicated 1 in 9 teenagers and young adults in this age range were “not only at high risk for long-term emotional, behavioral, and health problems, but they also represent a loss of human capital, with high social and economic costs.”
In Bexar County, there are approximately 36,000 disconnected youth. The councilwoman is proposing a pilot program for youth to be given opportunities they might not typically be considered for.
“This proposal is to explore creating a pilot program to essentially create an internship opportunity to re-engage disconnected youth and or those youth who are currently justice-involved and are impacted to get connected with workforce opportunity and meaningful internships.”
The city has an annual internship program called City Ambassadors where students are placed at companies across the city. High school graduation and at least a year of college are requirements to participate. About 200 students are placed in jobs across San Antonio. One of the requirements is the student must be a San Antonio resident. The program began in 2004.
Castillo said under her proposal, rather than start an entirely new program where new funding would need to be secured, the criteria could be adjusted to allow students at least 16 years of age be eligible with a focus on those who are at risk, disconnected, or going through the justice system.
“We believe there'd be value if the municipal juvenile court can offer referrals into the pilot program. And same thing with the juvenile court over at the county as well. So a referral process where there's an opportunity for us to re-engage our at-risk youth that need an alternative pathway than the one that they're currently on,” she said.
The next steps in the process for this to be a reality would be to pass the city council governance committee. It’s not immediately clear when it would be considered.
Disclosure: Texas Public Radio regularly participates as an employer partner in the City Ambassador program during the Summer.
