By Lindsay Park

It was 80 degrees or higher in Downey, where I made the regrettable decision to wear black skinny jeans, a blouse easily susceptible to signs of perspiration, and unbreathable shoes with absolutely no foot support. Coupled with the less controllable aspect of my black hair, I became what you might call a human sauna. But the heat was only my first challenge. Trying to find the meeting room where the MADE Work Experience Orientation would be held was the next.

My name is Lindsay, a rising senior at Westmont College, and a freshly minted intern at Bayha Group. In the past month, I’ve been charged with guest blogging for our site and learning the various processes of drafting and submitting a grant.

That being said, my primary focus is educating myself on the Bayha Group partnership with Downey Unified School District (DUSD) and learn about the MADE Work Experience. Here are some of my insights.

Changing student futures in Downey

The majority of DUSD students either live on or below the poverty line, with many of those students coming from minority groups. However, a four-year $6M grant awarded to the district has allowed Downey to maintain high graduation rates due to the implementation of career technical education (CTE) courses and pathways.

Giving students a robust selection of courses and pathways have equipped them in their transition out of high school and into either post secondary education or direct employment. Downey ‘MADE: A Career Initiative’ is a product of this grant. In an effort to better prepare students with a solid foundation and future success in jobs that require critical thinking and problem solving skills, a summer program was launched where students could participate in six weeks of workplace experience. It has proved a huge success, with a new record of 82 participants this summer alone.

My experience at MADE

Working remotely in San Diego, I had a murky understanding of everything I read in print and perhaps felt an indifference to the whole thing. I understood that this grant supported student futures and provided a gateway to opportunities. But that was the extent of my personal feelings or reactions, as I hadn’t worked on the grant previously, nor was I present for the inception and growth of the MADE program.

Because of this, I attended the Parent and Student Orientation to give myself some more context of the involvement Bayha Group has with the MADE Work Experience program. So, on Monday June 11, I set my GPS to Downey High School and drove 90 miles north to southeast Los Angeles County. Now, to pick up where I left off… well, once I arrived, I was completely lost.

I was aimlessly roaming in between the Downey High School buildings, in a desperate search for both the meeting room and our Outreach Manager at Bayha Group, Carmen Tovar, who I hadn’t yet met. I thought I had already failed my first assignment, but to my blessing, Carmen saved me with a phone call and directed me to where the meeting would be held. After acquainting myself with Carmen, Ben Sandoval from the Southeast Los Angeles County Workforce Development Board, and another Bayha Group intern, we settled our things and prepared for the arrival of participating students and their families.

As five o’clock approached, my flushed cheeks and sweating forehead calmed down, and students began filing into the meeting room. As the numbers grew, so did the feeling of anticipation and nervous energy; it was something akin to that ‘first day of school’ experience. It was the kind of feeling where you don’t know what to expect but were excited nevertheless.

After Carmen and Phil Davis, the Director of CTE, STEM, and Support Programs for Downey Unified School District, primed the session with a summary of the program, the meeting transitioned into the nitty gritty details of W-4s, time sheets, and other points concerning employer information.

Going over paperwork wasn’t awe inspiring and probably caused some participants to lose focus… (okay, fine, my mind drifted a little). But it was also in this moment that I, a complete stranger to the MADE Work Experience until now, saw this program come to fruition. These small details were part of a grander process that far exceeded a six week internship; it was a soft introduction to real life. I found myself witness to tangible proof of the impact of the program and the potential it was instilling within participants. My murky understanding became clearer.

The benefits of the MADE program

At this point, you may ask, “What’s the big deal about signing a W-4 or getting a part-time job for the summer? Everybody does it.”

While that may be true, the MADE Work Experience is a lot more. It’s an opportunity for access–to build a network of bridges and expand a student’s list of resources that may not otherwise be as readily available to them.

Setting students up for the future

Upon my experience at MADE, I now see why this program is an unparalleled summer experience. In the same way that I had to navigate Downey High School on my first on-the-job assignment for Bayha Group, these participants will be navigating the intertwining roads of their work environment.
In the same way that I was unprepared for the LA heat, these students will experience the road bumps we face all too frequently in both our jobs and life. In the same way that I was temporarily lost within the Downey campus, these students will come across many moments where they may feel lost in their positions and will need a helping hand.

And, in the same way that I felt proud to be a part of a process that clearly made a difference, DUSD participants will learn, grow, and become proud of their accomplishments through this impactful program. That’s a win in my book.