Testimony of Amy Dudas, Senior Advisor of Career Readiness, before DC Council Committee on Executive Administration & Labor

April 22, 2026

Good morning Chairperson Bonds and members of the Committee on Executive Administration and Labor. My name is Amy Dudas (she/her), and I serve as Senior Advisor for Career Readiness at DC Action. DC Action convenes the Youth Economic Justice Coalition which comprises youth housing and workforce development providers, research partners, youth and community leaders to develop career readiness policy priorities that will improve economic mobility for Black and brown youth in the District. 

Looking across program clusters, the Mayor’s proposed FY27 further shifts the District’s deepest career readiness investments to the K-12 education system. Specifically, the District is adding nearly $12 million to its Career and Technical Education (CTE) and Advanced Technical Center (ATC) investments to prepare more students for high-wage, high-skill careers in cybersecurity, general nursing, clinical medical assistantships, and emergency medical technician fields. Yet within the budget we are discussing today for the Department of Employment Services (DOES), there are roughly $1.6 million in cuts to the locally and federally funded youth programs. While full CTE programs of study offered in high schools or through ATCs are accessible to students at or above-grade level with ample flexibility in their school schedules to participate in them, students who may be struggling academically and youth who are disengaged from education are seeing funding reductions in key DOES program models that integrate more individualized support services, basic skills education, GED preparation, and essential workplace skills. Across youth-serving DOES programs, we urge the Agency to ensure the retention of slots at FY26 levels– and growth wherever possible– to expand access to career development opportunities for youth seeking training and employment outside of the District’s education system. 

High School Internship Program (HSIP)

The budget appears to hold funding for participant wages steady for HSIP at $324,000 in FY27, continuing FY25 and FY26 funding levels, though there is a lack of clarity whether this represents the budget for all HSIP wages. The Dr. Morris-Hughes indicated slots may be reduced as a result of reductions to the Year-Round Youth budget line. This would continue reductions to this program. Despite FY25 appropriations from this Committee, youth development providers have raised the alarm that the Agency limited some spring semester placements in SY25-26, citing insufficient funding. We see this reflected in the budget with FY25 funding for HSIP participant wages dropping from $324,000 in approved funding to $165,030 in actual spending. This 50%, mid-year reduction runs counter to years of youth advocacy requesting the expansion of paid, year round work experiences. Mid-year funding lapses affect providers who offer structured placements and youth working to acquire the educational and work experiences needed to chart their postsecondary pathways. The FY27 budget must ensure full funding for both semesters of HSIP. 

Year-Round Youth Program 

The Year-Round Youth Program, comprising the Pathways for Young Adults Program (PYAP) and Out-of-School Program (OSY) is reduced by $757,000 in the proposed budget, representing a 16% cut across the programs. PYAP offers a rare opportunity across the District’s career readiness landscape for out-of-school youth ages 18-24 experiencing unemployment to gain a supported foothold in the District’s labor market through paid work readiness, job training, credential attainment and work experience in a structured, career preparation model. The OSY program targets a wider band of out-of-school youth ages 16-24 with occupational skills training and educational support for youth seeking an alternative path to a high school credential, including GED preparation and basic education support. It appears the majority of this cut derives from the reduction of 5 FTEs in FY27 with participant wages held steady at $2.18M. Participant placements in the High School Internship Program may also be affected by these cuts.

While the retention of slots and pay for youth within these specialized programs is paramount, we urge the Agency to ensure significant staff reductions will not reduce the support youth participants receive in terms of navigating barrier remediation services, career coaching or mentorship.

WIOA Youth Programs

Furthermore, we are relieved to see that federal grant levels for year-round WIOA Youth programs and their associated participant wages are stably-funded at $2.45M and $1.29M, respectively. However, fluctuations in the District’s actual and revised spending in these categories, with actual spending for subsidies at $460,725 in FY25 and $1.67M revised for FY26, raises concerns that the District may not be maximizing federal dollars to provide uniquely supportive services for youth who face barriers to education, training, and employment. We acknowledge that federal grant disbursement may play a role in these fluctuations and look to this Committee and the Agency to provide clarity on any impact to the real or anticipated number of youth served in fiscal years 25, 26 and 27 and program outcomes given this uneven allocation.

Mayor Marion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP)

Despite a slight overall budget increase, the Mayor Marion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP) budget actually includes a cut of approximately $800,000 for participant wages. We know both the High School Internship Program (HSIP) and Career Ready Early Scholars Program (CRESP) are funded by the MBSYEP budget, but the significant reduction in participant wages counters the Director’s testimony that the Agency plans to serve more youth through MBSYEP in FY27. Also, cuts to participant wages are particularly disappointing as young people have been advocating Council to pass and fund the Pay Our Youth a Fair Summer Wage Amendment Act of 2025, which would require an additional $8.9M annually to raise MBSYEP wages to $10/hr for 14 and 15 year olds and to the DC minimum wage for all older participants. Higher wages, when financially feasible for the District, will positively impact program retention and completion, helping more youth to earn wages to sustain their participation in a developmental program that can lay groundwork for long-term earning potential.

Youth Pre-Apprenticeships and Apprenticeships

While we see a $141,000 cut to the Office of Apprenticeship, Information and Training in the proposed FY27 budget, the budget lacks transparency about youth-specific pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships. The Youth Economic Justice Coalition is supportive of the expansion of youth apprenticeship models for out-of-school youth to combat the chronic labor market exclusion of young Black and brown District workers. We know these models, offering rigorous, paid and supportive pathways to careers, are especially beneficial for youth disconnected from high school or postsecondary education. By offering  income-generating, employer-informed training and work experience, youth apprenticeships can provide critical on-ramps to career success outside of the District’s K-12 education system. Despite these clear benefits, DOES’s performance oversight materials cited difficulty obtaining employer commitments to retain apprentice employees after program completion. We hope this Committee will encourage DOES to develop and report out on strong employer engagement strategies to articulate programmatic pathways from pre-apprenticeship to sustainable careers for youth apprentices.

MBSYEP Capital Project

In FY22, DOES was funded with $2.3 M for the MBSYEP Capital Project to replace outdated network infrastructure. FY26 Performance Oversight materials indicate the Agency still has $1.3M of funds left to spend, though last year’s responses suggested the project was expected to be completed in FY25. DC Action has shared in prior testimony that the Office of Youth Programs (OYP) website and host-employer facing digital tools lack clarity, are challenging to navigate, and lack critical information for youth and family decision-making about program participation. At a minimum, the OYP’s rebuilt digital interfaces must include current program model descriptions, details on program intensity and duration, all available wraparound supports, the skills, credentials and compensation youth can expect to earn through them, and complete eligibility and participation requirements. Providers also note cumbersome and outdated time and attendance and payroll interfaces that impact efficient program administration, as well as the frustrating lack of support for ensuring strong employer:participant matching within the MBSYEP program. We hope Dr. Morris-Hughes will provide greater insight into the specific updates planned under this project, share any youth and provider priorities that were solicited for the project, and updates on remaining work and the completion timeline for the project. 

With looming shifts in federal career readiness priorities, painful cuts across this budget– including $2.8M in cuts to services for youth experiencing homelessness– will exacerbate economic instability for DC’s youth and families. We urge this Committee and DOES to restore and maximize every dollar of the District’s career readiness investments. These are critical services with the unique ability to help young people generate income and insulate youth and their families from service, program and coverage cuts across the budget. Thank you for the opportunity to testify.

Amy Dudas

Senior Advisor, Career Readiness

adudas@dckids.org