Escambia County Youth Employment Program Opens New Doors for Local Youth

Escambia County recently completed another cycle of the Summer Youth Employment Program, helping over 200 local youth gain valuable on-the-job experience while working toward their future career goals.

Through the paid internship program, participating youth worked up to 30 hours per week in various county departments, learning a variety of practical job skills along with workplace etiquette such as professional dress, timeliness and respect.

“The goal of this program is to give young people an opportunity to learn the skillsets to be able to get jobs and to be employed,” District 3 Commissioner Lumon May said. “Through the Summer Youth Employment Program, we hope to expose them to opportunities and create an atmosphere where they would want to live, work and play right here in Escambia County. The sky is the limit for these bright young people, and I’m excited to see the positive impact they will make as they work toward reaching their goals.”

In addition to learning new skills through their day-to-day work duties, program participants received job readiness training and post-employment briefings, which provided them feedback about their job performance.

Youth worked in a variety of county departments this summer, including Animal Welfare, the Board of County Commissioners, Building Services, Corrections, County Administration, Development Services, Engineering, Escambia County Area Transit, Human Resources, Library Services, Natural Resources Management, Neighborhood and Human Services, Parks and Recreation, Public Safety, and Public Works.

Several interns also spent the summer working for community partners and constitutional offices, including Circuit Court Judge Miller, the City of Pensacola, Community Health Northwest Florida, Cordova Mall, the Escambia County School District, Escambia County Tax Collector’s Office, Gulf Coast Minority Chamber of Commerce, Just Ice Served LLC, and the Town of Century.

County Administration intern Alexis Jackson said her favorite part of the program was learning valuable workplace skills, along with the opportunity to assist and interact with members of the public.

“This year, I’ve learned a lot with communicating, whether it’s communicating with patrons who come in and helping them get assisted, or helping them over the phone,” said Jackson, who plans to go to college to study business. “I definitely feel like I’ve picked up some skills, and I’ve also just learned time management – being able to flow from one task to the next.”

Jackson said she’d highly recommend the program to anyone considering it for next year.

“I would say do it,” she said. “It’s a very good opportunity. There’s a lot of different fields that you can go in and try, so there’s a lot of opportunities to learn new skills and get real world experience.”

Kayla Harmon, who worked in District 3 Commissioner Lumon May's office for the second summer in a row, said the skills she learned last year helped her feel even more prepared for this year’s program. Some of her primary takeaways from her experience in the Summer Youth Employment Program are adaptability, organization, communication, and problem-solving skills, in addition to interacting with the community and getting a behind-the-scenes look at local government.

“I would say this experience has really opened my eyes to the importance of local government," said Harmon, who is currently in college and plans to attend law school in the future. “I’ve learned how local leaders get really involved with their communities and create changes.”

One success story from this year’s program is third-year intern Jayden Hudgins, who has now been hired full-time as an Animal Welfare Coordinator in the Escambia County Animal Welfare Department.

Hudgins said his favorite part about the program is the people he gets to work with every day, who have become like a second family to him.

“I feel like it’s helped me in multiple ways, like my communication skills, how to talk to people, how to address people,” Hudgins said. “Just how to be yourself and stay consistent in what you do.”

Escambia County Animal Welfare Director John Robinson said his department always enjoys having summer interns on the team, and this year was no exception.

“We’re very excited to add Jayden to our team – this is the second time we’ve hired somebody from the program,” Robinson said. “The group this year has been phenomenal, and I would hire any of them on my regular staff if they were available to work full-time. The interns are a huge help at the animal shelter during the busy summer season, and our staff is always sad to see them go when the program is over.”   

Escambia County's 2025 Summer Youth Employment Program participants were recognized by District 3 Commissioner Lumon May and Neighborhood and Human Services staff for their hard work this summer during a ceremony Friday, July 18 at the Brownsville Community Center.

“I know that internship opportunities make a difference in the lives of children,” Commissioner May said. “Maybe because they made the best relationships that they could possibly make with staff, with other commissioners, they’ll get an opportunity one day to stay right here in Escambia County and make a difference in the lives of others.”

Information about future cycles of the Escambia County Youth Employment Program will be posted at MyEscambia.com/syep and on the Escambia County Facebook page. 

County Administration intern Alexis Jackson works at the front desk during the Summer Youth Employment Program.