RCEDA 8.5x11 Report d3

Youth in Government Day – Eastern County The 4 th District’s 15 th Annual Youth In Government Day was held at the Taj Mahal Building at the Indio Fairgrounds on March 15, 2018. The event allows high school students from throughout the 4 th District to participate in an inspirational and informative day where they have the opportunity to shadow county employees from a variety of county departments. Students are paired with a county mentor in a department that fits their future career goals and aspirations. This year, over 100 students participated and were paired with approximately 70 county employees. Participating departments included Fire, Mental Health, District Attorney’s Office and the Sherriff’s Department. The AJCC staff also participated as mentors and scheduled an informational and productive day for their student mentees. During the event, five students expressed interest in public service, primarily law enforcement. Rather than job shadow the mentors, they participated in a mini workshop at the AJCC with information on applying for jobs and interviewing. A few were able to draft a brief résumé highlighting their volunteer experience in preparation for their job search. Indio AJCC staff were able to have the mentees meet with the Department of Public Social Service Investigations Unit on-site at the Indio AJCC that same day. This gave them a different perspective on non-traditional public sector law enforcement jobs that may be available to them. In the afternoon, mentees from Indio and Coachella Valley High Schools participated in a business roundtable event at the AJCC which brought them together with manufacturers and fabricators When the youth reconvened in the afternoon, one young man spoke in front of the crowd commenting on how much he had learned about jobs and services provided through the AJCC.

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