Summer program gives Cape students valuable work experience

Sixteen-year-old Cedric Moore, a junior at Cape Alternative Education Center, had a productive, educational summer working as an intern for the Cape School District. "I delivered mail, moved furniture, painted parking lot stripes, waxed floors and helped with other general maintenance all summer", he said.

Moore participated in a collaborative effort between Cape Public Schools, MERS/Goodwill and local businesses that prepares young people for jobs in a variety of fields such as childcare, secretarial, landscaping, lawn maintenance, journalism and data entry. Some students worked at the local Salvation Army agency helping with activities in Cape Girardeau, St. Louis, and Branson, MO. Three other interns worked for the City of Cape Girardeau assisting with filing, answering phones, data entry and mowing.

Funding for the Next-Generation Jobs Team was provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Darin Stageberg, Transition Coordinator at Cape's Alternative Education Center and Central High School, said the program wouldn't be possible without the cooperation of local businesses and agencies, including Southeast Missouri Hospital, Southeast University, Withers Broadcasting, Holiday Inn Express, Victorian Inn, Chateau Girardeau, Magna-Tel, Botkin Lumber, Second Generation Daycare, Cape Area Resource Center, Manpower, and Salvation Army.