HOUSTON, TX — On June 14, thousands of young people started summer internships with over 180 employers all over the Houston area as part of Mayor Sylvester Turner's Hire Houston Youth initiative.
The paid position gives a chance to young people of ages 16 – 24 to explore opportunities in the private sector, non-profit and government positions relevant to their interests. Some available positions include retail, restaurants, transportation, healthcare, construction, nonprofit, STEM and government.
"It is a great day in the City of Houston when young people can gain work experience like this. The opportunities in the Hire Houston Youth program are about more than a summer job. These interns are getting hands-on experience with companies and organizations that will help define their future career opportunities and shape our wonderful city," said Mayor Turner.
The private sector and nonprofit organizations are the majority of the HHS jobs. The City of Houston also provides internships in many departments, such as the Mayor's Office, Department of Neighborhoods and the Houston Police Department.
"In the future, I want to own my own company. I think that learning to do the communications and things like social media, press releases and all these other things that go into communicating with the people inside and outside of your business would be really beneficial to me," said Alex Butler, a UT student who is interning in the Mayor's Office of Communications entering his sophomore year.
The Hire Houston Youth program has grown from 450 positions in 2015 to more than 10,000 job opportunities in 2019. However, because of Covid-19, in 2020 HHY changed to a virtual "earn and learn" program, in which the participants can train and work in a remote setting. The program has filled over 5,000 positions in 2021.
On June 17, a Hire Houston Youth Career and Resource fair will be held virtually at 10:00 a.m. Interested parties can apply for jobs by visiting https://www.hirehoustonyouth.org. For more detailed information, please visit their website or contact their team at hirehoustonyouth@houstontx.gov.