Enrollment is now open for teens looking to gain pre-employment and leadership skills this summer. The Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce will offer a session of its TeenQuest program July 6-30 at Baker College of Flint.
TeenQuest provides free training in employability skills for any Genesee County high school student age 14-19. It helps Flint & Genesee youths prepare for success by learning the basics of teamwork, business etiquette, work ethics, communication, goal setting and conflict resolution.
The summer session runs 1-4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays at Baker College, 1050 W. Bristol Road.
“Our summer sessions are great for teens who are too busy during the school year with other extracurricular activities after school,” said Rhetta Hunyady, Vice President of Education and Training at the Flint & Genesee Chamber. “Putting in the time and effort during the summer is a great investment in the future. Teens gain knowledge, skills and confidence that will benefit them the rest of their lives.”
Teens must be in grades 9-11 during the current school year to be eligible for the summer session. Current eighth-graders (entering ninth grade in the fall) are not eligible for the summer session but are encouraged to apply for the afterschool sessions that begin in September.
TeenQuest is a pre-requisite for employment through the Summer Youth Initiative (SYI), which matches employers with hundreds of TeenQuest graduates for summer employment via an invitation-only summer job fair. Nonprofit organizations and businesses that hire TeenQuest graduates are eligible to have 50 percent to 100 percent of costs subsidized.
Graduates of the summer 2015 TeenQuest session will be eligible for the 2016 SYI.
TeenQuest applications can be downloaded online at https://www.flintandgenesee.org/learn/teenquest/apply-today/.