The Solutions Lab
Let’s Make Sure Young People Are Ready for the Future
Across the country, there is growing recognition that fostering meaningful connections between students, educators, and professionals across a range of industries can create powerful learning experiences for young people. While certain educational opportunities like dual enrollment coursework and industry credentials are increasingly available, too often missing are two components critical for ensuring students are prepared for their future careers:
Internships
Youth are eager to explore their career options, build their professional networks, and get experience in a real workplace.
Soft Skills
Young people benefit from explicit learning opportunities focused on communication, teamwork, and other skills they’ll need in college and a range of modern work environments.
Reimagine the High School Experience with Experienced, Trusted Partners
That’s where YouthForce NOLA comes in. For nearly a decade, we have equipped students with the skills and know-how they need—including through on-the-job experience and the development of invaluable soft skills—to take charge of their futures and successfully navigate their next steps in life. And now we’re making our programming and lessons learned available to other organizations committed to strengthening and reimagining college and career pathways in their communities.
1,200+
Students have completed a YouthForce NOLA Internship
250+
Local businesses support our work
245
Educators, nonprofit staff, and others trained
3,400+
Students have access to soft skills learning in their day-to-day classroom experiences
5,000+
Young people reached annually
Through Our Solutions Lab, We Help Our Partners Get a Jump Start Designing, Launching, Growing, and Strengthening Youth Internships and Related Programming.
We work with nonprofits, school districts, charter management organizations (CMOs), local chambers of commerce, and other ventures nationwide, offering:
Youth Workplace Readiness Curriculum—Adapt and deliver to youth in your program to prepare them for their internships and beyond.
Internship Supervisor Training—Adapt and deliver training sessions for local professionals overseeing interns on the job.
Internship Role-Specific Work Plan—Career-specific “playbooks” guide supervisors day-to-day work with interns, from assigning high-quality workplace projects to giving feedback. Key to-do’s are clear, with optional modifications and suggestions for enhancing the experience.
Soft Skills Empowerment Workshops—Bring us in to facilitate engaging trainings for anyone who supports youth in your community - nonprofit staff, educators, camp counselors, families, and more.
Job-Ready Soft Skills Assessment & Scorecard Platform—Access an integrated platform to evaluate and provide feedback on interns’ soft skills, job performance, and overall hireability.
Technical Assistance & Coaching—We also provide a range of strategic guidance and implementation support regarding career-connected learning.
Collaborative, Integrated Approaches Are Key.
Providing students with access to the learning experiences and practical resources they need to explore and confidently pursue a wide range of opportunities after high school requires a coordinated network of education, community, and business partners all working together. We bring our cross-sector experience, subject matter expertise, and the wisdom of our entire network to bear on everything we do.
You Don’t Have to Start From Scratch.
We directly run one of the most effective and comprehensive youth internship programs in the nation, and we have nearly a decade of experience working directly with educators and local employers who support young people in school and on the job. We want to share our lessons learned and resources with you.
A Targeted Investment with Outsize Impact.
We offer cost-effective services focused on the most impactful components of career-connected learning. Our pricing is designed to make exceptional, supportive workplace learning experiences available to all young people.
Contact the Solutions Lab
