Flint & Genesee
EDUCATION & TALENT
Flint & Genesee
EDUCATION & TALENT
For Flint & Genesee Education & Talent, talent development starts as early as kindergarten with a suite of programs that inspire students to explore new interests, build soft skills, and pursue their academic and career aspirations. The division partners with local school districts, higher education institutions, and community organizations to provide thorough, high-quality programming throughout the year.
Providing Enriching Programming
The Flint & Genesee talent continuum begins with YouthQuest, an afterschool and summer enrichment program that focuses on six key pillars, including academic support, enrichment activities, leadership development, nutrition and nutrition education, physical fitness, and family and community engagement. In 2022, the program served more than 1,400 K-12 students at 14 school sites in Flint Community Schools, International Academy of Flint, and Flint Cultural Center Academy.
A cornerstone of the YouthQuest program has long been the professional development of its employees. To continue delivering high-quality programming, YouthQuest introduced the new role of site support and training specialist in early 2022. This staff member was promoted from within the program and was responsible for coordinating a tiered professional development calendar based on data and feedback from staff and external assessors. Collectively, employees logged more than 2,400 hours of professional development in topics including building community, creating structure, and reframing conflicts.
Additionally in 2022, YouthQuest leaned into continuing partnerships with community organizations to create a greater impact for students. Through working with the Flint Community Education Initiative, for instance, YouthQuest successfully launched the Clubhouse Sports model after piloting the program in 2021. This allowed Flint students to participate in organized team sport competitions for cheerleading, flag football, girls’ and boys’ basketball, and girls’ volleyball. In addition, a collaboration with Flint Fresh and the Crim Fitness Foundation allowed for the Chop It Like Its Hot Club to take place at multiple sites. While FoodCorps members taught students how to make a healthy meal, Flint Fresh provided the necessary ingredients—once during program and again with their families at home.
YouthQuest partnered again with Genesee Intermediate School District and the Youth Entrepreneur Institute to offer the YQ Biz Youth Entrepreneurship program. As part of the program, students were challenged to start an entrepreneurial venture and gained real-world experience as they sold their products monthly at the Flint Farmers’ Market and at other community events, earning a total of $7,996. Not only were these young entrepreneurs invited to share their business concepts at YouthQuest’s “Hustle Hard” Pitch Competition in front of a panel of local business owners, four attended the NextGen Summit in New York, where they heard from inspiring speakers and networked with other young leaders.
Bookmark It
To better connect with students, families, and partners, Flint & Genesee Education & Talent launched its own standalone website in 2022. EducateFlintandGenesee.org
YQ students making ice cream
YQBiz "Hustle Hard" Final Pitch Competition
YQ student working on a mural board
With grant support from the Jennings Foundation, YouthQuest teamed up with Flint Public Art Project—the organization behind many of the murals found throughout the city of Flint—for a deep dive into street art. Local artists took students from the beginning stages of planning their artwork through drawing out the blueprint and putting their artwork on plywood. Later in the year, students had the opportunity to see their boards on display during a tour covering Flint murals.
The AT&T Foundation also provided funding to purchase leveled readers, or books that pair readers with developmentally appropriate texts, for YouthQuest students in grades K-8 in 2022. The program used these books to promote literacy after school and, by the end of the school year, each YouthQuest student received three to four books based on their reading level to take home.
Flint & Genesee Summer Youth Employment Program
Building Teen Employability Skills
Next up in the talent continuum is TeenQuest, a pre-employment and leadership training program available to Genesee County students in grades 9-12, ages 14-19. In 2022, 323 students graduated from the program, which honed the skills needed to secure and keep a job. Hands-on activities promoted key soft skills like communication, goal setting, and conflict resolution. Participants also learned how to write resumes and prepare for interviews.
In April, 178 TeenQuest graduates secured summer jobs at the Summer Youth Initiative (SYI) Job Fair, where they interviewed with 26 local nonprofit and for-profit organizations for summer employment. They were hired by employers including Flint Children’s Museum, the Flint River Watershed Coalition, and Elle Jae Essentials, a local skin and hair care business owned by a TeenQuest/SYI alumna.
Additionally, 27 Flint students secured outdoor jobs through the Summer Youth Employment Program, offered in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. These students gained real-world work experience as they tended urban gardens, mowed lawns, and maintained the landscape at Mott Park, which will soon become part of a new Michigan state park.
In addition to TeenQuest, Education & Talent provided 53 career prep workshops to 1,262 middle and high school students. These workshops, offered in 45- to 60-minute increments, were adjusted based on grade level to support the career development curriculum being used in each district.
TeenQuest student volunteering at the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan
Building Teen Employability Skills
Next up in the talent continuum is TeenQuest, a pre-employment and leadership training program available to Genesee County students in grades 9-12, ages 14-19. In 2022, 323 students graduated from the program, which honed the skills needed to secure and keep a job. Hands-on activities promoted key soft skills like communication, goal setting, and conflict resolution. Participants also learned how to write resumes and prepare for interviews.
In April, 178 TeenQuest graduates secured summer jobs at the Summer Youth Initiative (SYI) Job Fair, where they interviewed with 26 local nonprofit and for-profit organizations for summer employment. They were hired by employers including Flint Children’s Museum, the Flint River Watershed Coalition, and Elle Jae Essentials, a local skin and hair care business owned by a TeenQuest/SYI alumna.
Additionally, 27 Flint students secured outdoor jobs through the Summer Youth Employment Program, offered in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. These students gained real-world work experience as they tended urban gardens, mowed lawns, and maintained the landscape at Mott Park, which will soon become part of a new Michigan state park.
In addition to TeenQuest, Education & Talent provided 53 career prep workshops to 1,262 middle and high school students. These workshops, offered in 45- to 60-minute increments, were adjusted based on grade level to support the career development curriculum being used in each district.
TeenQuest student volunteering at the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan
Supporting Collegiate Efforts
Bringing the Education & Talent continuum to a close is Flint Promise, a last-dollar scholarship available to eligible students who live in and graduate from a school located in the city of Flint. The scholarship—which may be used at Kettering University, Mott Community College, and the University of Michigan-Flint—first launched in 2018 and has recently started to see its first students graduate from the program. In 2022, seven Flint Promise students graduated from college, with plans to pursue everything from medical school to careers in cybercrime and digital investigation.
As of Dec. 31, 2022, 150 of students were enrolled in the scholarship program.
Flint Promise scholar Darius Collins graduated from UM-Flint with a degree in biochemistry
