More than 25 organizations will fill McPherson Square Park this April, ready with summer job opportunities for teens.
McPherson Square Library is holding its second Teen Summer Job Fair in McPherson Square Park on April 13, 2:30-5:30 p.m. There will also be free food and music.
The event strives to remove the barriers to summer employment for teens in Kensington, according to McPherson’s LEAP Youth Advocate Bryan Belknap.
Summer jobs provide learning experiences, money, and connections with positive people, Belknap said.
“Growing up in Kensington is very challenging,” he added. “We want to make sure that our young people aren’t losing opportunities alongside the fact that they have to face so many challenges.”
Some obstacles to summer employment for teens include having the necessary documentation for applying to jobs like IDs and birth certificates, tricky job application questions, travel, and sometimes a lack of awareness about job opportunities.
At the event, City agencies will help teens obtain the documents they need to apply for jobs, including birth certificates, PHL City IDs, and work permits. There will also be groups ready to help teens create and revise resumes.
Philadelphia Youth Network, a nonprofit that connects youth ages 12-24 with jobs citywide, will help teens fill out its WorkReady application, which can include complicated questions like asking for a family’s income, Belknap said.
“You’re allowed to just respond with the teen’s personal income as a family income, but that doesn’t say that anywhere,” he added.
To promote the event, McPherson Square Library is doing a contest where teens will compete to recruit the most teens to attend the job fair using social media. The first-place winner will receive a $100 gift card, and the teen who takes second place will score a $50 gift card.
Teens should bring any personal documents like an ID to the fair. If they plan on getting a City ID there, they may register ahead of time through the library’s Facebook page.
However, Belknap encouraged teens to show up even if they don’t have all the necessary paperwork.
Editors: Zari Tarazona Designer: Zari Tarazona