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Feature TYLA Project

TYLA Hosts Jack & Jill for a Professionalism and Job Seminar for Students
By:  Lance Currie

Recently, TYLA hosted twenty Dallas-area high school students who participate in the Jack & Jill program for a Professionalism and Job Seminar. Jack & Jill is a national organization with goals to encourage, expose and educate youth through community service projects, academic study and recreation. The program walked the students through the steps of applying for a job, and then taught them the basics of their rights in the workplace. Finally, the students were shown some simple lessons in personal finance.

Before the students arrived, they were asked to fill out mock job applications. This provided them an opportunity to think about how to present themselves and their accomplishments. The program consisted of a series of excellent TYLA videos and related discussions. The first video, Emmy winning They Had a Dream Too, was meant to inspire the students to take action. As many of us know, applying for a job can be a terrifying process—especially your first time. However, seeing the impact young people had on the civil rights movement gave the participants an opportunity to realize they too can accomplish big things. As expected, the students were very active in the subsequent discussion led by TYLA director Sarah Rogers. Next, R U Safe? educated the students about online dangers. Along with the video, TYLA director Adrienne Clements discussed how employers have access to everything you put online, including Facebook pages and more. This reminded the participants that they need to think about how they present themselves to the world. TYLA director J.P. LeCompte led the presentation of Your Hired. Now What? As J.P. explained, it is important to know your rights when you enter the workforce. Young people, especially at low wage jobs, can be abused by employers for their lack of knowledge. Finally, Jack & Jill arranged a presentation on personal finances to talk to the students about balancing their checkbooks and the dangers of credit cards—lessons many of us wish we learned earlier in life.

During the program, each potential “job applicant” was pulled out of the group session to participate in mock interviews. Each applicant interviewed for approximately ten minutes, and then received feedback from the volunteer interviewers, providing the students helpful insights for that first time when they take a deep breath and open the door to a potential opportunity.

Special thanks goes to Carrington, Coleman, Sloman & Blumenthal, LLP for allowing TYLA and Jack & Jill to utilize their offices for the program; TYLA President Jennifer Morris for arranging the event; and the TYLA members and directors who volunteered their time to work with a great group of students.