On the morning of July 27, Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere along with Plano ISD staff, elected officials, employers and sponsors celebrated the 52 teens who recently completed the Plano Mayor’s Summer Internship Program. The teens were honored with a drive-by parade at the Hilton Dallas/Plano Granite Park Hotel. As each teen drove by, parade attendees cheered them on with cowbells, signs, pom-poms and noisemakers.
“It was important to us that we acknowledge these fantastic interns for showing resiliency and not backing down during what was an extremely challenging summer,” said Mayor LaRosiliere.
“These teens are true trailblazers who learned to navigate the virtual business landscape while making connections with some of our region’s top companies and nonprofits. I remain in awe and grateful to our partners who were creative and so committed to our youth during a time when it would have been easy to not participate. They have made a difference in the lives of our students.”
Social distancing measures were respectfully obeyed by all in attendance. Every attendee wore a mask, kept their distance between one another and were consistently hand sanitizing.
Each year in the past, the program hosted a luncheon to celebrate the completion of the summer program. The mayor had to get creative this year due to social distancing needs as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Though a luncheon was not possible, the teens and employers were still able to express their gratitude for one another as well as for the experience.
Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, each student was able to work remotely or onsite – or a hybrid of both – for a top company or nonprofit in the area this summer. They worked 20-40 hour work-weeks, earning a minimum of $10 an hour. At the celebration parade, each student received a swag bag as well as a personal note from the mayor and a City of Plano pin.
The summer internship program was created in 2014 to provide rising Plano ISD juniors and seniors real-life experience at small and large companies, nonprofits and governmental agencies. Since the inaugural year, 450 students have participated in the program.
Longtime sponsors of the program include Capital One, JP Morgan Chase, NTT Data Services, Atmos Energy, Bank of America, City of Plano, Dallas Mavericks, FedEx Office, Kroger, Liberty Mutual, Oncor, Plano ISD and Granite Properties.
