Youth Employment Services

YES Teens

Youth Employment Service (YES) prepares teens for job success and connects them to opportunities.

For the most detailed and up-to-date information on our program, please visit the YES Website.


Programs

Youth Employment Service (YES) offers several different types of opportunities for teens.

  • YES Connect: our year-round program which helps teens build the skills they need to find and keep a job, and assists teens seeking private employment in the community. This program is open to teens ages 14-21 who live in Tompkins County. Application to YES Connect is rolling and year-round.
  • YES Summer Jobs Program: this program places teens in subsidized (paid by YES) summer jobs with over 70 different local employers and organizations. Jobs pay minimum wage, and teens typically work around 120 hours over the course of the summer. Eligibility for this program can depend on several different factors including municipality of residence, family income, and first-time-worker status. Eligibility requirements and spaces available can change slightly from year-to-year. The application period for the YES Summer Jobs Program runs from mid-March to the end of May. Check our website for the most specific dates and deadlines.
  • YES also runs the Ithaca Youth Council Ambassadors (Link to IYC page) program, a leadership and civic engagement program. 

Getting Started

  1. Get a YES application from the Ithaca Youth Bureau, during YES outreach at your school, or download a PDF version (PDF)
  2. Fill out the application to the best of your ability. A parent/guardian should not fill out the application for you. Make sure a parent/guardian signs the back of the application if you are under 18.
  3. Bring your application to the YES office or hand it to a staff member at one of our school outreaches and we will set up an interview. You can find us in the Ithaca High School cafeteria on Tuesdays and Thursdays during lunch or at Lehman Alternative Community School in the main hallway Wednesdays during lunch. Alternatively you can call YES at 607-273-8364 to setup an interview.
  4. If you are applying for YES Connect, our staff will work with you to develop a customized action plan based on your goals and define next steps for you to work on together. If you are applying for the YES Summer Jobs Program, our staff will give you more information about required documents and next-steps after the interview. Through JobNet we can help you get hired by: