Good morning, Councilmember Bonds, and members of the Council. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. My name is Annish Perry. I am a member of the DC Action Context Team, a student at Maya Angelou Charter School, and the parent of my nine-month-old daughter.
I support this bill because young parents face real barriers to employment. When you are young and pregnant or have a child, many employers hesitate to hire you. They worry about attendance, childcare, and whether you can fully commit. As a result, many of us are not given a fair chance to prove ourselves.
This program could change that. It would allow young parents to gain real work experience, build our résumés, and show that we are reliable, committed workers.
But for this program to actually help young parents, it must be designed with our input and reality in mind.
First, transportation support is essential. I may need to drop my child off with a family member or at child care before work. Coordinating that and getting to a job on time is not always easy. Providing transportation, such as a shuttle, SmarTrip, or ride assistance through Uber, would remove a major barrier and help us succeed.
Second, participating employers must be supportive and understanding. Young parents are balancing work and parenting, often with little support. Sometimes parents have to stay up all night with our kids, but even though we are exhausted, we show up because we need to provide for our children. Employers should know that as parents, we are motivated and determined, and they should encourage us.
I also want to raise important questions about the structure of this program.
What kinds of jobs will be offered? Will they provide meaningful experience and real skills?
In my experience with SYEP, a lot of the work felt like group activities or volunteering rather than true job experience. I enjoyed it, but after, I didn’t feel like I gained skills I could put on a résumé or use in the future.
Instead, this program should offer hands-on roles and training in fields like hospitality, business, security, or cosmetology, jobs that lead to real income and career pathways.
Job training has to be part of the program. If jobs are only guaranteed for a year, we should have help knowing the skills and experience we gained to put on our resume and help secure long-term employment.
Program participants should get at least the minimum wage. As young parents, we are not working for extra money. We are working to support our children, as many of us do not have adults in our lives who pay for things or help with our kids.
It is good that the Council is looking at young parents, seeing that we need help, and trying to create opportunities for us. But to truly succeed, this program needs to have more input from young parents to make sure it has what we actually need to succeed.
Thank you for your time and consideration.