Youth Apprenticeship
Youth Apprenticeship is yet to be fully defined in CA, however in its various implementations and funding sources around the US, it typically defined as:
- Apprenticeship for folks age 16-24
- Apprenticeship programs that start in High School
Everything that is true about Apprenticeship is also true about Youth Apprenticeship, except that it is targeted for a younger age group. Right now, the average age of an apprentice in California is 29. Youth Apprenticeship is a chance to expand this earn and learn pathways to include younger folks and is really an effort to expose young people to this earn and learn career onramp earlier in their career exploration journey.
While both work based learning, Youth Apprenticeships and Internships are very different:
Examples of Youth Apprenticeship in CA
Early Care and Education Youth Apprenticeship
Berkeley City College and the YMCA of East Bay collaborated with both local partners Alameda Social Services and First 5 Alameda County, along with a sector intermediary, ECEPTS to launch an Early Educator Apprenticeship program. They did an initial pilot of the program in 2019-2020 with Kidango and YMCA as the employers and sourcing students/apprentices from Castlemont High School and Berkley City College.
They leveraged dual enrollment between the high school and the college so that the apprentices were earning college credit while completing their apprenticeship, learning both on the job and in a classroom setting. They scaffolded the apprentice’s journey with a cohort model, no cost college courses and text books, and an intentionally interdisciplinary approach to maximize options for the apprentices upon completion.
The program culminated in CA Child Development Associate Teacher Permit along with a stackable college certificate that leads to an Associates Degree Teacher Permit, which is transferable to the State or UC system. This program received a PAYA Grant, which was critical to its launch. They are kicking off phase 2 in Fall 2021
(last updated Sept 2021)
Apprentices Reaching Career Horizons (ARCH)
The San Joaquin County Office of Education has launched a High School apprenticeship program in collaboration with San Joaquin Delta College along with San Joaquin County Worknet. In November 2020, this program launched with the occupation of Information Security Specialist employed in the IT Departments in the local schools and school district offices.
This program leverages dual enrollment with San Joaquin Delta College so that apprentices are both completing high school and getting early college credit for their classroom work. This program is aiming to expand its occupation offering to include Logistics, Home Health Aids and Automotive.
They received a CA Apprenticeship Initiative Grant in 2019, which was critical to the launch. See this flyer for more information. Pam Knapp, Director of College and Career Readiness and K12 Strong Workforce Pathway Coordinator with the San Joaquin County Office of Education joined us in the Bay Area to share learnings from this program.
(last updated Sept 2021)
5 Steps to Launching a Youth Apprenticeship
Technical Assistance Providers and Support
Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship - PAYA
The Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship supports the success of efforts in states and cities to expand access to high-quality apprenticeship opportunities for high school age youth.
Urban Institute Youth Apprenticeship Intermediary Project
Youth apprenticeships offer a meaningful link between high school and the workforce, with benefits for students, employers, educators, and the economy as a whole. The Youth Apprenticeship Intermediary project, in cooperation with the US Department of Labor’s Office of Apprenticeship, is working to increase the quality and quantity of registered youth apprenticeships. You can find more resources about youth apprenticeships through this portal.