2008 Summer Youth Employment Program participants with their HCL supervisors. Front row: Beth Brainard (HCL Communications), Meredith Gallogly, Priscille Demosthene, Joyce Imafidon, Nancy Quinn (Widener). Middle row: Rhea Karabelas Lesage (Widener), Lingwei Qiu (Loeb Music), Luis Pinales, Lydia Souroufis, Damita Salmon, Kathy Rutter (HCL Technical Services), Ann Heintz (Tozzer), Monica Goncalves. Back row: Andrew Wilson (Loeb Music), Berlange Gauthier, Mikko Harvey, Lisa Carper (Tozzer), Jeffrey Yu, Nancy Hallock (HCL Technical Services).

On August 19, a dozen local high school students wrapped up their summertime HCL jobs. Hailing from Boston Latin, Cambridge Rindge and Latin, and TechBoston Academy, the students spent six weeks in libraries and units throughout HCL, performing a wide array of tasks, including answering phones, staffing circulation desks, and assisting with cataloging.

It was all part of the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP), a program run by Harvard since 2001 that gives high school students an early opportunity to experience an office environment. For many of the teenagers, who worked 25 to 35 hours a week, it was their first job. The program supplements the real-life work experience with weekly lunch speakers who talk to students both about Harvard and careers.

Berlange Gauthier, who is a senior this year at TechBoston Academy, spent the summer in HCL Communications, learning web design skills and helping to maintain the HCL public web site and intranet. “Working here was awesome,” said Gauthier. “It was amazing and fun, and the experience showed me what it’s like to work in a professional environment.”

Another four students—Priscille Demosthene, Monica Goncalves, Joyce Imafidon, and Jeffrey Yu—worked in HCL Technical Services, assisting with special projects and the ordering, receipt, and cataloging of materials.

This summer also saw the return of second-year participants Vincent Duong and Damita Salmon. Duong worked in the Judaica Division in Widener Library, assisting with office tasks, and Salmon worked in HCL Collection Development again, where she handled general office duties and assisted with projects, frequently for the Spanish Division.

This summer marked HCL’s fifth year of involvement with the Summer Youth Employment Program. It provides a learning experience for the students, while helping HCL units meet staffing needs when many employees are taking summer vacations.