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Boston: Mayor Michelle Wu Builds on Summer Youth Jobs Success, Kicks-off School-year Program to Connect Students with Career Pathways and Local Employers

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Following a successful Summer Youth Jobs season that connected nearly 11,000 young people with paid work opportunities across the City, Mayor Michelle Wu and Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper today announced the start of the School Year Youth Jobs program, expanding career connected opportunities for students year-round. Through partnerships with employers, schools and community partners, the program connects young people to real work experience, career-readiness support and pathways into Boston's workforce.

"Boston's citywide paid youth summer jobs guarantee has set national standards for workforce development, career readiness, and youth engagement. Now we're bringing that momentum into the school year with even more partners coming together for every Boston student to have access to meaningful, paid job opportunities," said Mayor Michelle Wu. "We thank every employer and community organization for joining us in this work and helping our students follow their passions and take the first steps toward rewarding careers."

Boston's summer jobs program is one of the strongest in the country. In 2024, Mayor Wu launched futureBOS, a centralized hub that connects Boston youth and young adults with thousands of paid opportunities across nonprofits, schools, local government, healthcare, technology, arts, and more. During Mayor Michelle Wu's first administration, the City more than doubled the amount of funding for youth summer jobs from approximately 5,000 to 10,500 jobs in 2025. In 2026, the City continued the momentum, connecting 10,500 young people with paid work opportunities, including 6,000 jobs funded by the City.

"Boston Public Schools is proud to connect our students with work-based learning opportunities that allow them to put their learning into practice while exploring pathways to future careers," said Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper. "Building on the success of a summer that connected 10,500 young people with employment opportunities, we are excited to continue that momentum throughout the school year. We thank the City of Boston, our local employers, and philanthropic and community partners for providing meaningful experiences for our students to build the skills and confidence they need to pursue their goals."

Building on the success of futureBOS, the City is expanding paid youth employment opportunities into the School Year Youth Jobs program through a private-public model announced in June 2026. Launched by the City in partnership with a founding coalition that includes Boys and Girls Club of Boston, YMCA of Greater Boston, Artists for Humanity, Boston Private Industry Council, Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the program brings together organizations from the private, public and nonprofit sectors to hire young people directly or support placements through funding.

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The founding coalition committed an initial 475 jobs for the 2026-2027 academic year. With additional commitments from partners including Suffolk Construction, State Street, Eastern Bank, Citizens Bank, Dana Farber, P&G Gillette, Liberty Mutual, John Hancock, Boston Children's Hospital, Roxbury Community College, Emmanuel College and Bank of America, the City has now reached 80 percent of its goal and is on pace to connect 2,000 young people with school year jobs by January 2027.

"Reflecting on this past summer, I am incredibly proud of what our youth employment program achieved. The energy, dedication, and growth we saw from our young people was extraordinary," said Allison Vernerey, Executive Director of the Office of Youth Employment and Opportunity. "We are excited for this refreshed, elevated school year program, and I'm grateful for the support of our staff, employers, partners, and community members who have rallied around our young people."

"When we invest in young people, we invest in the future of Boston," said Lisa Murray, Citizens Massachusetts President. "Programs like Boston's School-Year Youth Jobs Program provide early career experiences that help students build confidence, develop workplace skills and explore future opportunities. At Citizens, we're committed to expanding access to pathways that help young people succeed and build the workforce of tomorrow."

"Suffolk is proud to support Boston's school-year jobs program that helps create meaningful opportunities for young people throughout the city. These work experiences accomplish so much more than simply providing young people a paycheck. This program helps build confidence, skills and connections that can shape a student's future," said John Fish, Chairman and CEO of Suffolk. "We are grateful to Mayor Wu and our partners for their leadership and commitment to investing in Boston's next generation."

The School-Year Youth Jobs program gives participants hands-on experience, opportunities to explore different career pathways and the chance to earn money while building skills for the future. While the program has historically been funded primarily by the City, the new model expands paid opportunities and strengthens career pathways by engaging a coalition of partners to invest in Boston's talent and economic development.

School year jobs are funded and managed through three distinct streams:
  • Publicly funded: through the Boston City Youth Corps, students will have access to 400 jobs across City agencies and programs, including Boston Housing Authority, Boston Centers for Youth and Families (BCYC), and the Boston Public Library. The Youth Corps will also incorporate existing school-year opportunities through the Boston Student Advisory Council, Mayor's Youth Council, STRIVE, and the Office of Youth Employment. Additionally, the city is launching a stipend-based career readiness model to support 200 Boston Public School students and immigrant youth in partnership with the Mayor's Office for Immigrant Advancement.
  • Privately funded: philanthropic contributions will enable partner organizations to host 340 paid youth jobs
  • Direct employer hires: corporate, non-profit and institutional partners have made direct commitments to hire 663 young people for paid school year employment.

For the new school year, the Boston City Youth Corps is transforming youth opportunities by implementing a new dual-model that will support Boston's youth with meaningful, career-connected opportunities while also filling gaps in essential municipal services across the City's neighborhoods. Youth will be able to apply to jobs at the frontline of constituent services, ensuring the City's libraries, community centers, public spaces and parks remain vibrant, accessible, and well-supported.

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"Today's announcement is an encouraging step forward for Boston's young people, and a reflection of what's possible when we invest in their potential. I'm grateful to the organizations, businesses, and employers across Boston who are partnering with us to create these opportunities for young people," said Boston City Councilor At-Large Ruthzee Louijeune. "There is more work to do to reach our goals and ensure young people have access to year-round job opportunities where they can learn, earn, build their futures, and support themselves and their families. We're going to keep pushing to make those opportunities available to every young person who wants one."

"I am amazed and inspired to hear over 10,500 of our young people had paid experiences this summer building foundational skills for their future careers," said City Councilor Enrique Pepén. "To know that another 1500 will continue building these skills into the fall is astounding. I thank all the partners for making these opportunities possible for our youth."

"Having a job as a young person is about more than a paycheck—it's about opportunity, mentorship, and a path forward. I know that firsthand," said City Councilor Henry Santana. "We should celebrate this progress while recognizing that the work isn't done. I will keep fighting to expand youth jobs and prioritize opportunities for young people in FY28."

"The Red Shirts are back—and Boston's young people will make the program their own. I was proud to introduce the budget amendment that made this investment possible, reimagining the historic Red Shirts as the Boston City Youth Corps," said City Councilor Gigi Coletta Zapata. "The program will provide 400 young people with paid, school-year employment that strengthens our neighborhoods while connecting them to real career pathways. This is about more than a paycheck. Its about giving young people a stake in their city and a bridge to the good jobs of Boston's future."

"A big part of our work on the City Council is supporting students during the many hours they are outside the classroom," said City Councilor Ben Weber. "The summer and school-year youth job programs are a vital part of that ecosystem. I want to thank the mayor, the City's private partners, and my Council colleagues for filling in the gap to ensure our students have jobs this school year and for reviving the red shirts program."

All paid youth opportunities will be available for youth to browse and apply to starting September 30, 2026.

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