From Leap for Education: As teenagers across the country struggle to find summer jobs, LEAP for Education and its partners are providing 65 high school students from Salem and Lynn with six weeks of paid work experience, career preparation, mentorship, and professional skill development.

Eleven of those students are also participating in a new hybrid employer placement cohort, dividing their time between structured programming at LEAP and hands-on work experiences at Salem Hospital, Lynn Community Health Center, North Shore CDC, and Dream MORE at Thurgood Marshall Middle School.

These opportunities come during what is expected to be the weakest summer for teen hiring since the federal government began tracking the data in 1948. According to an Associated Press report published by Fortune, the number of jobs secured by teenagers fell 25% last summer compared with the previous year. About one-third of Americans ages 16 to 19 were employed last summer, down from a peak of approximately 60% in the late 1970s.

The decline is not simply a matter of teenagers choosing not to work. Young people around the country report submitting dozens—and sometimes more than 100—applications without receiving an offer.

At the same time, the entry-level labor market is changing. Some of the routine jobs that once gave teenagers their first work experience have been eliminated or automated. Employers operating with leaner teams may have less capacity to train inexperienced workers, and teenagers increasingly compete with older and more experienced candidates for the positions that remain.

“Young people are being told they need experience to get a job at the same time that many of the jobs traditionally used to gain that first experience are disappearing. LEAP’s Summer Work Program is designed to break that cycle. We pay students, help them develop the skills employers need, connect them with professional mentors and networks, and stay alongside them as they take their first steps into the workforce.”

Ariel FitzHugh, Senior Director of High School and Post-Secondary Programs at LEAP for Education

Preparing Young People for a Changing First-Job Market

LEAP’s free Summer Work Program combines paid work with the preparation and support many first-time workers need but employers may not have the capacity to provide on their own.

Over six weeks, students are participating in career readiness workshops, project-based work connected to their career interests, weekly one-on-one mentorship, professional skill development, and opportunities to learn from people working across a range of industries. LEAP staff are also providing ongoing coaching as students practice workplace communication, manage schedules and deadlines, respond to feedback, and develop resumes for future employment.

The program responds directly to several of the barriers facing young job seekers.

When employers prioritize candidates who already have experience, the Summer Work Program gives students a setting in which to develop and demonstrate workplace skills.

When access to employment depends on professional connections, the program introduces students to mentors, employers, and community members who can provide guidance and help expand their networks.

As automation changes the types of entry-level work available, the program also emphasizes skills that remain important across industries, including communication, collaboration, critical thinking, initiative, adaptability, and problem-solving.

Because students are paid, they do not have to choose between earning income and participating in career preparation.

For many participants, the program is their first paid work experience and their first opportunity to build a resume, receive professional feedback, explore a career field, and develop relationships with adults working in areas that interest them.

A Supported Bridge into the Workplace

This summer marks the launch of LEAP’s new hybrid employer placement cohort. The new hybrid cohort is extending the Summer Work Program’s career readiness and mentorship model into professional workplaces. Students are spending part of each week at Salem Hospital, Lynn Community Health Center, North Shore CDC, or Dream MORE at Thurgood Marshall Middle School.

During the remainder of the week, they continue participating in LEAP’s structured professional development, mentoring, project work, and coaching. Through their placements, students are aining experience in healthcare, community development, education, and youth programming. They are learning how workplaces operate, practicing communication with supervisors andcolleagues, contributing to day-to-day activities, and exploring potential career paths through direct experience.

The model is intended to address a challenge for both young people and employers. Teenagers need authentic experience to become competitive applicants, but employers may have limited staff capacity to recruit, prepare, supervise, and support workers who are entering a professional environment for the first time.

Through the hybrid model, LEAP helps prepare students, establishes learning expectations, provides ongoing coaching, and serves as a point of contact for both students and employer supervisors. Employers provide meaningful exposure to their industries while sharing responsibility for student development with LEAP and other workforce partners.

“Our interns are off to a great start, ” said Tina McLoughlin, Director of Community Health at Salem Hospital, during the opening days of the placement. “They seemed so excited and professional. I think this will be a great experience for them.”

A Regional Partnership for Youth Employment

A portion of the hybrid employer placement cohort is supported through the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s Youth Employment Gateway Cities Learning Community Pilot, which is testing innovative approaches to youth engagement, employer partnerships, and career readiness across Massachusetts.

Through the pilot, the MassHire North Shore Workforce Board received a $75,000 award to work with regional partners to expand meaningful youth employment opportunities in Lynn and Salem. LEAP, Salem Hospital, and Lynn Community Health Center are among the partners helping implement the local initiative.

The partnership brings together complementary roles. MassHire North Shore contributes regional workforce expertise and employer engagement. Placement partners provide students with authentic workplace experiences and exposure to local industries. LEAP provides career readiness programming, mentorship, student support, and a structured environment in which young people can prepare for and learn from their placements.

The state’s investment reflects a growing recognition that expanding youth employment requires more than asking individual teenagers to apply for jobs on their own. It requires collaboration among employers, schools, workforce organizations, municipalities, and community-based organizations to create opportunities and ensure that young people have the preparation and support to succeed in them.

“This kind of partnership is increasingly important because no single organization can solve the decline in youth employment alone. Young people need employers willing to open their doors, workforce partners thatcan help create opportunities, and trusted organizations that can prepare and support them throughout the experience. When those pieces come together, a first job becomes more than a paycheck—it becomes a foundation for what comes next.”

Kayla Dorst, Executive Director of LEAP for Education

Building the North Shore’s Future Workforce

LEAP and its partners plan to build on the inaugural hybrid cohort by expanding employer placements across healthcare, business, education, nonprofit services, manufacturing, technology, and other regional industries.

The longer-term goal is to create a progression of opportunities in which young people can first develop foundational career-readiness skills, then participate in supported workplace experiences, and ultimately become prepared to pursue more independent internships and employment.

The Summer Work Program is part of LEAP’s New ERA—Education, Resources, Allies—an emerging regional workforce initiative through which LEAP seeks to build on the strength of its programs while taking a lead role in creating a more coordinated, durable system. New ERA will bring together schools, employers, postsecondary institutions, workforce organizations, and community partners to strengthen the region’s talent pipeline, expand economic mobility for young people, and create an infrastructure that can outlast any single program or organization.

Video highlighting the New ERA Initiative

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About LEAP for Education

LEAP for Education is a Salem- and Lynn-based nonprofit that supports young people in their personal, educational, and career growth by partnering with the community to increase opportunities and advance equity. LEAP provides free academic enrichment, career exploration, paid work experiences, mentoring, postsecondary advising, and comprehensive youth-development programming for middle school, high school, and postsecondary students.