Dressed in blue polo shirts, 86 high school students shared their internship experience during a presentation on July 30 at a special City Council meeting.
Open to incoming high school sophomores and juniors, the six-week summer program called “Summer @ City Hall” provides local youth with an opportunity to actively participate in their local government and community.
Students are supported throughout the program by credentialed teachers that deliver a curriculum focusing on civic engagement, governmental structure and youth development. All students received five high school elective credits and a monetary stipend upon program completion.
“One of my best experiences as an intern was working in a real-world workspace with other students who have similar interests, goals, and aspirations,” said student intern, Ishkaram Gill.
During the six-week program, each student focused on issues impacting the City. Each group of students had a task of creating a video and a billboard related to their topic areas. Topics included: civic engagement, public sector jobs, childcare accessibility, and fare-free public transportation.
The videos and billboards were presented at the special City Council meeting. The proposed billboard designs are expected to be shown on digital billboards adjacent to major freeways across Sacramento.
“Our goal for next year is to make sure that our students have the opportunity to see their billboards displayed,” said recreation general supervisor, Kris Wimberly.
Additionally, some of the students helped develop a social media marketing strategy for the launch of City’s Youth, Parks, and Community Enrichment Instagram page. The handle is under YPCE_CityofSac.
Summer @ City Hall internship program is a collaboration between the City’s Youth, Parks and Community Enrichment Department, Twin Rivers School District, Natomas Unified School District (NUSD), Sacramento City Unified School District, and WayUp Sacramento.
All applicants must attend a high school in the Sacramento Unified School District, Natomas Unified School District, Twin Rivers Unified School District or live in the Sacramento city vicinity to intern.