The City of Statesboro recently held a Youth Connect Graduation Ceremony for its fifth annual Statesboro Youth summer program.
The city’s five-week pre-professional program aims to inspire local high school students to become engaged and lifelong learners in their community, according to a release from the city of Statesboro. The program began at the end of May and focused on the core concepts of education, employment, civic responsibility, leadership and diversity.
The theme for the 2025 graduation was: "Cultivating Purpose & Unlocking Potential."
At the request of the mayor and City Council, city staff developed and hosted the inaugural Statesboro Youth program class in June 2021. The goal of the program is to allow students to learn more about local government and explore possible career paths in local government while also obtaining life skills that can be applied in the present and future.
"We (spent) five weeks this summer cultivating youth by helping them build and prepare for the future,” said Dr. LaSara Mitchell, City of Statesboro Youth Program coordinator. “This program has so much to offer youth such as life skills, social skills, and employability skills. They also learn financial management and much more! The work-ready program gives youth real-life work experience to ultimately prepare them for the career path of their choice.”
The Youth Connect summer program provides a setting similar to an internship for high school students to gain experiences while also earning a stipend. Each week, the participants reported Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and earned $8.25 per hour.
Participants were assigned to a city department or one of the program’s partner organizations, which include local non-profits and government entities.
Students who participated in the program learned about the following topics: fundamentals of city government, life skills, and soft skills, as well as lessons in employability, career exploration, civic engagement, leadership and diversity.
Questions about the program may be directed to the City of Statesboro’s Youth Program Coordinator, Dr. LaSara Mitchell, at (912)-212-2378 or through email at lasara.mitchell@statesboroga.gov.
