Common use of Staffing and Supervision Clause in Contracts

Staffing and Supervision. Adequate staffing and effective supervision serve as foundations for the program because well-trained, attentive, and caring adults are needed to guide and educate youths while ensuring their safety. Supervisors can also serve as role models and mentors for youths who can help them make connections needed to find jobs. In an evaluation of D.C.’s summer youth employment program written in 2012, researcher ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ stated that: Employers play an important role in preparing youths for successful transition into adulthood. Not only do they provide opportunities for work-linked learning but often also advising and training in relevant skills. Employers also can provide developmental assets to youths that no other setting can fully duplicate including exposure to the mainstream economy, practices of the working world, authentic information about career options and paths, and opportunities to apply formal learning to real-world problems in a team setting.23 ODCA site visitors noted instances of strong and weak supervision. Several programs employed managers who were very knowledgeable about the range of activities at their sites and provided guidance to both staff and youth participants. At one site, groups of youths were engaged in activities such as dance, chorus, and financial literacy instruction, while another group left on a field trip and a different group had already left to shadow a video crew. The multitude of activities seemed well-coordinated, and staff members regularly approached the executive director for informal consultations. At another site, the supervisor closely monitored the activities of the youth participants and maintained a folder with each youth’s weekly research, writing, and other assignments. In a report on D.C.’s 2010 summer youth employment program, researchers from Brandeis University’s ▇▇▇▇▇▇ School for Social Policy and Management noted that, “In SYEP, a relationship with a caring adult is key. DOES host sites that exhibited the most effective supervision had someone in the host coordinator position who was passionate about the program and about helping kids–a champion for the program 23 ▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, An Evaluation of the District of Columbia Summer Youth Employment Program, dissertation submitted to the faculty of the School of Public Health and Health Services of The ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ University, May 20, 2012, pp. 22-23. and the individual youth.”24 ODCA site visitors observed several site managers and other staff members express and demonstrate a strong commitment to the well-being of youths under their care by helping them with a variety of problems or everyday tasks. One supervisor stated that after admonishing a youth for wearing baggy pants, he learned that the teenager did not own a belt and bought one for him. At another site, two supervisors were regularly approached by youths for help with problems such as a lost Metro SmarTrip card. These supervisors, one of whom had participated in the summer youth employment program as a teenager, spoke at length about their efforts to help youths develop soft skills, such as how to deal with an angry or stressful situation, that will be valuable throughout their lives and careers, and about the importance of keeping youths safe during the summer. At some other MBSYEP sites, there were clearly strains on supervisory capacity, reflecting the challenges often inherent in keeping dozens or even hundreds of youths occupied in meaningful activities. At one site, approximately 100 youths, who were normally assigned to academic instruction in five classrooms, were in an auditorium for ballroom dance practice.25 Roughly one-half of the youths were practicing the steps, under the guidance of an instructor, while the other half watched from auditorium seats. The instructor struggled to hold the attention and direct the activities of the youths despite her constant efforts to instruct them on how to behave. In another large program (where 80 to 90 participants were present), the staff had difficulty keeping all of the youths involved. Despite the staff’s efforts, about half of the students seemed disengaged, and were talking on cell phones, eating, chatting, and, in one case, napping. At a smaller site with 21 youths present, the instructor tried to engage passive students in an information technology class by asking them questions, but his efforts were unsuccessful. Several students were on their cell phones, one student slept for part of the time, one student had headphones on, and one student left the room to talk on the phone for at least 10 minutes. Finally, one site was described by ODCA site visitors as having “no discernible programming or structured activities, and groups of children and/or young adults seemed to be just milling around.” The activities taking place included roughhousing in a boxing ring, eating, hair braiding, and working out on fitness equipment.