Teens pose around University of Toledo statue

YouthWorks

YouthWorks is a youth-driven work-readiness program for teens who are under-resourced in Washtenaw County. YouthWorks offers interactive experiences to help teens develop employability skills needed for the workplace such as professionalism, accountability, and customer service while exploring various career fields. YouthWorks strives to equip the Community Action Network teens with the knowledge and experience they’ll need to be successful in real-world work environments.

Work Skills Development

Youth

Futures

Participants learn how to make their best first impressions, code switch, communicate verbally and non-verbally, develop elevator speeches, engage in mock interviews, write a resume, correctly fill out a job application, and more.

Participants learn the difference between a "job" and a "career," as well as how to match their strengths and interests with a career path. Participants will explore post-secondary options, discover assets in their community, and meet with guest speakers.

Customer

Service

Career

Clusters

Teen smiles while volunteering at food distribution

Participants who complete this three-day workshop will learn the ins and outs of providing quality customer service and put those new skills to use by volunteering at one of CAN's food distributions.

Teens practice taking each other's blood pressure while learning about a profession in the medical field

Over the course of two weeks, participants learn about different career fields by doing research and listening to guest lectures. Participants will learn about skills they can develop now to enter those career fields in the future.