Connecticut community leaders want the state legislature to increase state support for youth and summer employment programs.
Michael Nogelo leads the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board, which runs workforce pipelines for manufacturing and healthcare, placing thousands of people into work in the region.
Nogelo said funding the programs is critical to the state’s economy.
“This isn’t a handout,” Nogelo said. “This is a program that has a good long-term return on investment. It puts money into the hands of low-income families that return it to the economy and then long term takes these young people, who you know, maybe have not had any workforce experience and puts them on a long-term trajectory to have good jobs and get on a career pathway.
State funding for the youth summer employment program is around $5 million — and pandemic-era ARPA funding added $5 million.
With ARPA funding running out, the state's youth employment programs could see a 50% reduction in funding.
Jim Boucher, who leads the workforce development board of Capital Workforce Partners, said that even with current funding levels, there are young people on waiting lists.
“Only one out of three young people who applied are getting these youth employment experiences,” Boucher said. “And there was also a report that was just issued in the previous year called the 119K Report that talked about the need for no waiting lists for youth, and our estimation is that that’s a $25 million investment.”
Advocates want the state to pick up the extra cost to at least replace the $5 million from ARPA.
