The Private Industry Council Partners with the Westmoreland-Fayette Workforce Investment Board to Provide Paid Summer Work Experience Opportunities

The Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette, Inc. (PIC) is partnering with the Westmoreland-Fayette Workforce Investment Board to provide a Summer Youth Employment Program to over 210 Westmoreland and Fayette county youth, ages 18 to 24. This program is designed to build a strong foundation of work skills through meaningful, supervised work opportunities supplied by municipalities, townships, state government offices, county government departments, and local non-profit organizations. The Summer Youth Employment Program is a key component in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), with the goal of developing work maturity skills across the nation. The Westmoreland-Fayette Workforce Investment Board granted the funding for this program to PIC because of its past success in operating summer work experience programs, both under the Job Training Partnership Act and the Workforce Investment Act.

Through federal funding, program participants are able to make a difference in their respective communities. The participants assigned to Manor Borough have been working to fix damage to local parks and recreation equipment attributed to the June 19, 2009 flood that caused Manor to be declared a state of emergency. The most recent project completed was to rebuild, and put back into usable condition, Manor Borough's local baseball field, which was flooded and nearly destroyed in this most recent and devastating flood.

The program is also providing youth with quality learning and employment experiences throughout Westmoreland and Fayette counties. "I worked here over Christmas" Alexandria Grab, an archivist for the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor in Ligonier explains "The grant ran out for my employment here and I was able to retain my job through the help of PIC." Also working at the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor is Dave Komoroski, a rising junior at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. Dave was fortunate enough to be delivering furniture through a previous job when the director of Lincoln informed him to apply for a marketing internship position funded through the Summer Youth Employment Program.

William Schleicher is taking a different route and making a difference with children aged 6 to 13 by being a counselor for Camp D.A.R.B. (Derry Area Recreational Board). "I feel honored to be in such a position," says Schleicher. His responsibilities go farther than watching children, as he plans daily schedules consisting of activities designed for social interaction and self independence.

In Fayette County, John Farrell, Cory Sawka, Brandon Bowers, Cameron Settles, and Christina Galanis are all part of the effort to clean up local community fixtures. One day was spent cleaning up a park in Ronco, the next they cleared and chipped brush to be used for mulch at the German Township compost site.

Over the last 25 years the Private Industry Council has been educating, encouraging, and empowering today's families in attaining educational achievement, obtaining and retaining employment, and supporting family growth. This is yet another in a long line of positive and effective opportunities offered by PIC, in collaboration with Westmoreland-Fayette Workforce Investment Board. It is easy to see why so many people signed up for, and are now experiencing the benefits of this new program.

The Summer Youth Employment Program will operate until September 30, 2009 and then again in 2010 from May 1 through September 30. For more information, contact your local PA CareerLink in Alle-Kiski, Westmoreland, or Fayette.