How does society engage the next generation in public service while stabilizing economic prospects for even the most vulnerable among them in an upside down world?
As the Seattle-based Schultz Family Foundation evolves its strategy to create a better future, it’s putting youth opportunity and inclusion front and center. President Tyra Mariani, who’s been in the role for roughly a year, said that the “twin pandemics” of COVID-19 and systemic racism made aligning work with its “core purpose of creating opportunity for all young people more pressing than ever before.”
The U.S. youth labor force—that is, 16- to 24-year olds—shoulder a significant number of entry-level jobs in industries like food service and healthcare, employment that landed them smack on the front lines during COVID-19. Between April and July 2020, the working cohort grew by 4.4 million to 17.5 million. By July 2021, the numbers swelled to 21.5 million—all at a time of rolling economic uncertainty.
But work isn’t the foundation’s only strategy for building back better. The value of combining perspiration with inspiration may be less tangible for youth than a paycheck, but activities that instill the values of public service and good citizenship can yield great dividends for communities to come.
Here are three ways the foundation co-founded by Sheri Schultz and chairman emeritus of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, built coalitions between philanthropy and public sector opportunity, including a new million-dollar national service initiative that focuses on inclusion.
1. Connecting youth with public service
Known for its commitment to youth and veterans, the Schultz Foundation has proved to be an agile funder during the pandemic. It quickly adopted tactics like direct giving, and created a Plate Fund that marshaled disparate resources in a matter of months, raising nearly $8 million to support restaurant workers.
Then, as youth unemployment rates in Seattle nearly tripled and 4 in 10 incoming college freshmen stayed home, the foundation turned its attention to the sudden disruptions in the lives of Seattle’s youth.
The Schultzes partnered with Serve Washington to develop the WA COVID Response Corps, a first-of-its-kind program that combined the resources of philanthropies and local and state government to create service opportunities with local nonprofits. As a result, 125 AmeriCorps members from diverse ethnic and income backgrounds helped stem food insecurity in the state, packing and distributing food at food pantries, working in community gardens, and supporting meal distribution to vulnerable populations and schools. By the end of four months, they’d distributed nearly 24 million pounds of food and served nearly 5 million meals.
2. Going national on community service and inclusion
The foundation then made coast-to-coast moves to support youth, investing $1 million in a National Service Challenge with the same partner, AmeriCorps. This time, the goal was to marry the ideas of public service and opportunity for all with 1:1 matching grants. The foundation invested between $100,000 and $250,000 in AmeriCorps state service commissions that developed concrete plans to improve the racial, ethnic and income representations of the communities they serve.
The program’s three goals are to increase the number and diversity of young people participating in AmeriCorps, strengthen the value proposition of a year of service for participants, and provide support and mentorship both during and after service.
Open to youth between 17–25, eligibility hinged on the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index. Grants were intended to span sub-grantees across states, match existing non-public commitments, and target programs specifically designed to increase diversity. Recipients were encouraged to collaborate quarterly to share insights and upsides.
3. Connecting kids to the economy
Both programs sync with Opportunity Youth, the foundation’s wider efforts to connect the 1 in 7 young people it says are disconnected from the American economy.
Tactics for helping the 4.5 million youth who are neither in school nor employed include funding pathways to employment, housing and mentorships.
SFF’s keystone initiative, 100,000 Opportunities, helps young people take their first steps toward employment. Like Schultz’s other initiatives, it combines the power of a variety of players, in this case, prospective employers, local governments and community groups.
Launched in 2015, the program’s engaged 50,000 youth in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Seattle, L.A., Phoenix and D.C. digitally, and 200,000 overall. Hiring programs include job fairs and connections to community organizations that specialize in job search. There are also two pilot programs with joblaunch.org, a digital hiring platform, and a national virtual hiring fair.
Mentorships are fostered through America’s Promise Alliance and MENTOR. And skills building grows through organizations like YouthBuild and Arizona State University.
By supporting the potential in youth, Schultz hopes to build stronger communities of the future. Tyra Mariani said programming collectively couples opportunity with the “meaningful and timely resources” youth need to succeed. From a response corps that supports professional development to a service challenge that strengthens inclusive engagement, all programs are designed to help young adults become “caring, and productive leaders in their communities.”