Supporting Career Development for Detroit’s Youth

Have you seen young workers such as high school students or recent high school grads in your place of work? How about other workplaces you visit? Thanks to City of Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s Grow Detroit’s Young Talent program, SEMCOG has had the opportunity to employ such workers for the past three years. SEMCOG’s participation in this summer jobs initiative, which exposes Detroiters aged 14-24 to the world of work through career exploration, career readiness, and career pathways, has been a wonderful experience for all involved.

Kathleen Lomako, SEMCOG’s Executive Director says, “It is important for SEMCOG to support GDYT because we know that talent is an essential component of Southeast Michigan’s future economic growth, and we must all play a part in exposing young people to career opportunities as early as possible.”

This year, more than 8,000 young people have worked with employers in fields such as government, utilities, manufacturing, construction and healthcare to grow their skills. Participants make important connections and learn about opportunities in career fields that match their interests and abilities. SEMCOG particularly wants to encourage future public administrators, regional and urban planners, and civil engineers. This year, we were excited to secure students with technical skills in geographic Information systems (GIS). Soft skills such as verbal and written communication are also important to stress the importance of communicating with our staff and member communities.

Scott Failla, SEMCOG’s HR Manager says, “SEMCOG believes in developing young minds. Our GDYT participants get to perform real work under the watchful eyes of our professional staff. This provides a way to expose them to some of our work, and may help in the development of a future GIS professional.”

Our three interns this year are using their technical skills to update SEMCOG maps and databases and enhance programs such as Park Finder – a new tool for locating local, county and state parks and amenities across the region. They are learning about the broad range of SEMCOG’s work by engaging both within the organization and at external meetings, which helps them to learn more about the region.

SEMCOG Planner Tyler Klifman with Kulsuma Fahima, Wayne State University student and GDYT intern

Kulsuma Fahima, 19, is a sophomore at Wayne State University majoring in Graphic Design with a Business Minor. She is working in our Plan Implementation Group inputting data into the Park Finder tool and uploading images on the SEMCOG website. This is her first paid job. Her favorite part of the job is getting to know “really motivated, hardworking people who are working on important issues like reducing traffic fatalities.” Her advice to young people about GDYT is to “be open to new experiences and the opportunity to try different things. Good professional experience will build you as a person, make you more well-rounded, and add to your resume.”

Her long term career plans are to design book covers because she loves to read and loves art. She feels that she may need to move to New York or Chicago to work for a major publishing company, but would love to stay in Detroit to pursue her dreams and be close to her family.

SEMCOG Planner Janet Mocadlo with Cody Academy senior and GDYT intern Trejah Shines

Trejah Shines, 16, is a senior at the Cody Academy of Public Leadership. She is helping SEMCOG’s Data Analysis group with updating Building Footprints. She appreciates the structured environment at SEMCOG and says, “People are really nice. SEMCOG provides a positive environment, and the work gets easier with time.” She thinks more Detroiters should consider GDYT because “jobs provide structure.”

Although Trejah got one of the highest SAT scores in her school, she has been practicing for more than 200 hours so she can re-take it and get an even better score. Her favorite classes are math and chemistry, and she had been considering a career in immunology because “study of micro-organisms comes easily.” However, she is also considering a career in IT based on her experience at SEMCOG this summer. With the help of her career counselors at Cody, she is hoping to attend Wayne State University after she graduates.

SEMCOG Planner Chade Saghir with Jasmine Chatman, Mumford High School graduate and GDYT intern

Jasmine Chatman, 18, just graduated from Mumford High School this summer. She is adding data to SEMCOG’s new Traffic Volume maps. She says the work is detailed and very time consuming, but she has learned to use her time wisely because “five hours go quickly.” She says she likes SEMCOG because “there is always someone to help if you need it.”

She plans to begin a degree in Culinary Arts at Henry Ford College in the fall because cooking is her passion – especially comfort foods like pasta. Her long term career goals are to open a comfort food restaurant in Downtown Detroit and then many more in different locations. Her experience at SEMCOG has helped her get to know the region better.

SEMCOG appreciates the opportunity to help develop the region’s future workforce. Although our interns may not choose to become planners or engineers, the work experience at SEMCOG provides some of the technical and workplace skills needed for future career success.