Work With Tree Trust This Summer!

Tree Trust has many employment opportunities this summer. If you are interested in working outdoors on a landscape crew, Tree Trust may have the job you're looking for!

Summer Youth Employment Program

This program is for lowincome and at-risk youth ages 14-21 from Dakota, Washington and Hennepin Counties (not Minneapolis) and provides an opportunity for many young people to have their "first job." This is a 9-week, part-time (average 20 hours per week) program that pays $7.25 per hour and is perfect for youth who plan to return to school in the fall. Most jobs are outdoors with the Youth Conservation Corps and involve building environmental improvement projects like retaining walls and staircases, and doing landscape projects like  erosion control and trail maintenance. There are also limited individual placement opportunities in Dakota County with local businesses and other organizations for positions that include administrative, retail, customer service, and janitorial work.

Please note that this program does not serve youth from Minneapolis, Saint Paul or Ramsey County. If you live in Minneapolis you must apply through the STEP-UP program. We will not work in Saint Paul this year, but if you are seeking a job there, please see the Youth Job Corps website.

  

Applications are available on our website, and as in past years, program participants are chosen through a lottery system. The program is NOT first come, first served so  as long as you complete an application and submit it (online or by mail) by March 21 and meet the eligibility requirements for the program, your application will be considered. This is a popular program and we do not have enough positions for all youth who will apply, so there is no guarantee that you will get a job with Tree Trust.

Young Adult Conservation Corps

This program is for low income and at risk young people ages 18-21. It is an opportunity to gain real life work experience in a supportive setting. This program is more intensive than the Summer Youth Employment Program. It is 39 hours per week for 12 weeks on an entry-level crew. Successful participants have the opportunity to continue for another three months on the advanced crew, and following that for three more months as an intern. These promotions are merit-based and not all participants will continue beyond the entry-level stage.

There is a 3-month cohort that begins on March 11, and another that will begin in June. If you're not returning to school next fall, this program is a better fit for you than the Summer program since you have the opportunity to advance to the next level in the fall and continue your job with Tree Trust. If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, please view the learn more and fill out an application. Employment is not guaranteed.

Crew Leader for the Summer Youth Employment Program

If you enjoy working in the outdoors and have a passion for youth development, consider applying to be a crew leader with the Summer Youth Employment Program this year. You must be at least 18 years old, have a high school diploma or GED and two years of work experience. Learn more about the requirements of the job here and apply if it looks like a good fit for you.

Changes to the Summer Youth Employment Program

The Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) will undergo some changes for the summer of 2013. If you have participated in the past or are familiar with the program, make sure you read the following article because some of the changes will affect all program participants.

Application
Tree Trust is going from a paper application to an online application. The application will be available on our website, www.treetrust.org, on February 19, 2013. The online system will make it easier and quicker for participants to get their applications completed and in to us on time. It will also help ensure accuracy of entries into our system. If you don't have internet access or would prefer to complete a paper application, please email Allyson or call 952-767-3880 to have one mailed to you.

Hennepin County
Suburban Hennepin County participants will no longer be offered Individual Employment Experiences. The only jobs available in suburban Hennepin County will be crew member positions on the Youth Conservation Corps.

Dakota County
The program in Dakota County will be offered as in previous years with Individual Employment Experiences for participants who are 16-21 as well as the Youth Conservation Corps for ages 14-21.

Washington County
The program will remain the same in Washington County with only Youth Conservation Corps positions available.

Saint Paul
Tree Trust will not work in Saint Paul this year, so for participants of the Saint Paul Youth Job Corps, you will no longer see Tree Trust as an option for employment.

Minneapolis
If you live in Minneapolis, as in previous years you must apply through the STEP-UP program and your application must be received by STEP-UP by March 4, 2013.

This article only covers the changes that have been made to the program since last year. If you are unfamiliar with the program or need more information, visit our website, email info@treetrust.org, or call 952-767-3880 to learn more.

End of Summer at Tree Trust

Though the summer isn't technically over yet, Labor Day marks the unofficial end of the season for most Minnesotans. At Tree Trust, our summer season ends in August with the completion of the Summer Youth Employment Program, the summer cohort of the Young Adult Conservation Corps, and the YouthBuild advanced crew. All of the youth employment training programs work with youth in the summer months, and some work with youth year-round.

Summer is a busy time of year for our youth programs. Youth who are not in school for the summer have more time on their hands and greater need of guidance and positive activities than they do during the school year. Every summer for the past 36 years, Tree Trust has been here to provide youth with work experience, educational enrichment, and a paycheck for their summer work experience. 

So while most Minnesotans have been out enjoying the summer, Tree Trust staff have been here helping our participants find positive direction. Now that summer is closing and many of our youth participants have returned to school, we take a little time to catch our breath before we hit the ground running with fall forestry events, new crews of YouthBuild and Young Adult Conservation Corps (YACC) youth, and just generally preparing for the upcoming 2013 year.

By October, we’ll have nearly 50 youth participating with YouthBuild and YACC crews and Community Forestry has a busy autumn with Green Futures and Learning with Trees plantings. Thanks to all who have provided funding for Green Futures plantings this year – and especially to our anonymous donor who matches all of these contributions. 

Public plantings will be held in parks in Eden Prairie and Fridley in early October. Learning with Trees projects at schools in Orono and Brooklyn Park are being funded by CenterPoint Energy and Beim Foundation. We will also work with Wells Fargo and their volunteer team and a generous anonymous donor to plant more trees in selected parts of tornado-damaged North Minneapolis.

Tree Trust had a busy summer working with over 600 youth, and the break between seasons is short as we shift gears and move into our fall projects starting... now.

Youth Conservation Corps

There have been some questions on social media lately regarding the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) and the work that Tree Trust participants do in public spaces around the metro – primarily public park and recreation areas and the Midtown Greenway.

This work, which is enhancing public spaces and benefiting the community at minimal cost to the municipalities, is being done by the Tree Trust Youth Conservation Corps (YCC), which is part of the Summer Youth Employment Program. The majority of program participants are 14-17 years old and this program provides a first job experience to these youth, all of which have special needs, are low-income, or have other at-risk characteristics.

Youth build projects in Twin Cities parks and recreation areas such as retaining walls, stairways, timber edgers, and paver pathways. This program provides a learning experience that youth would not otherwise have and provides them an opportunity to spend 16-24 hours per week being positively involved in their communities.

In addition to providing worthwhile enhancements to public spaces, the projects that YCC participants build are a means to an end; they provide the method by which youth learn teamwork, accountability, and responsibility, as well as landscaping and construction skills. Youth are learning these skills while on the job and do not work as quickly as experienced adults. Additionally, they cannot operate power tools or heavy equipment, which significantly speed up projects at many construction sites where trained adults work.

As the Youth Conservation Corps is a job training program, youth do not work the entire time they are on a job site. In addition to their projects, youth participate in TeamTech lessons via laptop computers at work sites that allow them the opportunity to earn high school credit. These lessons are taught by trained instructors. Additionally, Tree Trust abides by all labor laws and provides water and lunch breaks according to regulations.

Tree Trust has worked closely with parks departments and municipalities all over the metro for 36 years. These partners provide projects to participants that fit the skill set of inexperienced workers and can be finished in the nine weeks that the program operates each summer. Additionally, parks departments and municipalities provide only the materials for the project and do not pay Tree Trust or its participants for their time. The projects are supervised by trained adults and meet Tree Trust's, and our partners', high standards. 

Please visit our Facebook page to view project photos or our website to learn more. If you have specific questions, please feel free to call our office at 952-767-3880.

Youth Conservation Corps picnics

Tree Trust will recognize and honor participants from our Youth Conservation Corps (YCC), which is a sub-program of the Summer Youth Employment Program, at five picnics in the metro area this week and next week. This summer, the program served more than 300 at-risk, special needs and low-income youth, ages 14-21, from the Twin Cities metro area.

Throughout the nine week program, participants have made improvements to local parks and recreation areas in Minneapolis and Saint Paul and in Hennepin, Washington and Dakota counties. The Youth Conservation Corps provides a summer employment experience to participating youth, and also helps participants to create lasting, positive changes in their communities and in their own lives.

Working from June to August, Youth Conservation Corps crews completed numerous improvement projects in approximately 25 Twin Cities parks and recreation areas, including the Midtown Greenway, Como Park, Westwood Hills Nature Center, French Regional Park, Square Lake Park, and North Valley Park. The picnics will be held to celebrate the accomplishments of these youth, including the presentation of Governor’s Awards to a number of youth who demonstrated outstanding leadership on their crews.

View photos of projects and participants on our Facebook page!

Individual Employment Placements

The Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) has two sub-programs, the Youth Conservation Corps and Individual Employment Placements. You have already seen a blog entries about the Youth Conservation Corps, but probably know less about Individual Employment Placements. For the individual placement portion of the program, SYEP staff works with a variety of community partners like libraries, governmental agencies, businesses, and nonprofits that are able to provide employment experiences to youth participants. Youth work in these community organizations and learn skills in the areas of customer service, childcare, janitorial, and administrative, among others.

Some examples of organizations where Tree Trust youth are placed this summer include ARC's Value Village in Richfield, Intermediate School District 287 in Plymouth, South St Paul Library in Hastings, Feed My Starving Children in Eagan, Independent School Districts 192 and 196 in Rosemount and Farmington, and the City of Brooklyn Center. There are 89 sites in total and 317 youth participants from Dakota and Hennepin Counties in the Individual Employment Placement portion of SYEP.

Providing this program allows Tree Trust to increase the number of youth we serve, provide more variety of experience, and work with youth who may not be able to participate on the Youth Conservation Corps. If you are interested in hosting a Tree Trust participant at your workplace next summer, please contact us.

Summer Projects

Tree Trust's Summer Youth Employment Program is working in parks and recreation areas all over the metro. We have been out taking photos to document the progress of some of the projects. Have a look at some of the work that young people are doing in your neighborhood!

Father Hennepin Park 6.28.12

Father Hennepin Park 7.5.12

Crews at Father Hennepin Park in Minneapolis are building a tiered retaining wall along side a staircase that was build by Tree Trust crews last year.

Three Rivers French Park 6.20.12

Crews at Three Rivers French Park in Plymouth are doing a construction paver installation.

McMurray Fields 6.28.12

Crews at McMurray Fields in Saint Paul are building a retaining wall.

Midtown Greenway 6.28.12

Midtown Greenway 6.28.12

Crews along the Midtown Greenway in Minneapolis are building a retaining wall along the bike path.

North Valley Park 6.29.12

Crews at North Valley Park in Inver Grove Heights are building a 33-step timber staircase at the disc golf course.

Schmidt Lake Park 6.20.12

Schmidt Lake Park 6.20.12

Crews at Schmidt Lake Park in Plymouth are building a retaining wall at a playground.

The Summer Youth Employment program has youth crews working all over the metro on the Youth Conservation Corps. Keep an eye out and perhaps you'll see some of their work up close! We will continue to document their projects over the course of the 9-week program. See more photos on our Facebook page.

Summer Youth Employment Program Session Starts

YCC crews building a boardwalk

IP youth at job site

The Summer Youth Employment Program will employ 604 youth, many of whom will begin work on Monday, June 18. Half of youth involved in the program are part of the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) and each youth is part of an 8-person crew that works 2-3 days per week. Crews are assigned to one of 19 job sites in Dakota, Hennepin, or Washington Counties, or in Minneapolis and Saint Paul parks. From 8am to 4pm crews work as a team to complete trail maintenance work, construct timber walls and stairs, install pavers, and construct retaining walls, and assorted other environmental improvement projects, all while earning wages.

The other half of youth participating in the program are placed in businesses, nonprofits, schools, libraries, and governmental agencies in Hennepin and Dakota Counties. Through these Individual Placements youth gain skills in retail, customer service, childcare, custodial, administrative, and assorted other types of work.

Not only do youth in both parts of the program gain transferable skills to take with them to future jobs, but the community benefits too. Residents near the job sites see improvements in their parks and recreation areas. Businesses also benefit through the assistance of young people who are eager to work.

Youth employed by the Summer Youth Employment Program are 14-21 years old and must meet eligibility requirements. Learn more about the program here. Applications were due in early April and youth were selected for positions by lottery in May. Over 1,130 applications were received with 53% of youth receiving jobs.

YCC began in 1976 and is Tree Trust's longest-standing program. It continues to serve young people across the Twin Cities to better prepare our youth for future careers.

Work for Tree Trust this summer!

Want to work outside this summer?  Looking for a chance to better your community and earn a paycheck? Work for Tree Trust this summer as a summer crew leader or a participant.

PARTICIPANT

Are you a young person who meets Tree Trust's eligibility guidelines? Are you ready for your first work experience? Tree Trust's Summer Youth Employment Program provides paid job training and a chance to earn high school credit over the summer. Make friends, learn new skills, earn spending money, and build confidence in yourself! We have opportunities for youth who want to work outside on crews doing landscape and environmental improvement projects and opportunities for youth who would rather work indoors in retail, childcare, administrative and other positions. Learn more and apply here. 

Don't forget that applications for the Summer Youth Employment Program must be postmarked by Monday, April 9, 2012. Late and/or incomplete applications will not be accepted. Contact felecias@treetrust.org with any questions.

CREW LEADER

Summer Youth Employment Program crew

Do you want to spend the summer working outside with local youth? Tree Trust’s Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) is an up-to-ten-week paid work experience designed to help young people learn and practice basic job skills. Crew leaders lead two crews of eight youth in outdoor work, building physically challenging projects like staircases and retaining walls for parks and community spaces. Applicants must be willing to work in all types of summer weather and must be committed to working the entire summer. Learn more here.

Applications must be submitted by April 27, 2012. Contact karlyt@treetrust.org with any questions or to submit an application.

Tree Trust needs host employers for youth

Are you interested in hosting a work experience for a Tree Trust participant? Tree Trust's Youth Development Services Program and our Summer Youth Employment Program provide services to young people ages 14-21 who are low-income or have varied needs. Program participants may be placed in internships in the community as part of a real world work experience.

Tree Trust partners with as many private businesses, nonprofits, schools, and governmental agencies as we can to provide a variety of employment experiences for our youth participants. We match up participants with employers based on the type of work the employer provides and the abilities and interests of the participant.

Some of the work that our participants have done includes childcare, adult care assistance, administrative, retail, janitorial, customer service, and others. Youth work up to 20 hours per week, depending on abilities. Participants earn minimum wage ($7.25/hour) to start, which is paid by Tree Trust, and may have opportunities for merit increases.

Tree Trust provides an orientation to each partner organization and trains host site supervisors. Participants complete an orientation to the program prior to being placed in a position. Host sites are given the opportunity to interview youth prior to accepting them in order to provide a real-world work experience and ensure a good fit. Youth and employers are supported throughout their placement by Tree Trust staff, and employers are expected to provide a supportive work environment for youth. 

If you are interested in hosting a work experience for a local youth, please contact Paula Van Avery at paulav@treetrust.org or 952-767-3883. Invest in our youth and our Twin Cities community by hosting a Tree Trust youth this year!