LYNN — Summer may be a time for rest and relaxation, but for a large group of Lynn youth, it is also a time for work.

The summer employment program for youth ages 16-21 is in full swing, with 350 seasonal employees scattered throughout the city completing a wide variety of tasks for public agencies, nonprofits, and private companies.

The summer youth employment program is coordinated by the Department of Community Development and funded by several sources, including the state, federal Community Development Block Grant, American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the Opioid Working Group, and local businesses.

City departments providing employment include: City Hall, Lynn Senior Center, Inspectional Services, Lynn Police Youth Academy, Parking Department, Lynn Public Schools, Parks and Recreation, and Lynn Special Needs Camp.

Youth are also working at nonprofits and private businesses, including the Boys & Girls Club, Lynn Museum, Greater Lynn Senior Services, North Shore Latino Business Association, Lynn Youth Street Outreach Advocacy, North Shore Navigators, Hirsch Landscaping, and Wayne Alarm.

“We have made the summer youth employment a priority,” Mayor Jared C. Nicholson said. “We are providing valuable opportunities that give our youth the chance to earn money while gaining important skills and experience.”

Two of this year’s summer youth workers are well versed in the program, having experienced it in different ways.

Dimitri Sent is in his third year as a summer worker. A 2025 Lynn English graduate who is attending UMass Boston, Sent worked in 2024 on a crew that cleaned parking lots. Last year, he assisted with special education students at Marshall Middle School. In 2026, Sent is back with the parking lot crew, but this time as a supervisor.

“There’s a different pressure on you (as a supervisor),” said Sent, who wishes there was not such a need for cleanup crews. “There is too much trash. People should take care of their trash.”

Sent said he has learned valuable lessons in his three years as a summer worker, especially last year at Marshall.

“That was a good thing to do,” he said, “working with disabled children every day. I really enjoyed that.”

Dellyanna Assade, who graduated from Lynn English in June, attended the Lynn Police Summer Youth Academy two years ago. This year, she is working there, shadowing the LPD staff who are running the program and helping in any way she can. She plans to study political science and criminal justice at Eastern Connecticut State University, so the job has special relevance for her.

“I’m interested in the field,” Assade said. “It’s great to work with a diverse group of kids who want to learn discipline and service. It reminded me of when I was there. This program is a great opportunity for kids who want to make the community better.”

While it is not the primary purpose, the summer youth employment program has served as a de facto feeder system for future city employees. That includes Parking Director Jessica Chiappini, who worked several summers while she was a student at Lynn English. She said she benefitted from the experience in many ways.

Chiappini worked for Community Development on a crew that was assigned to Lynn Public Schools, making repairs, painting, cleaning — and in her case gaining skills that would carry with her for the rest of her life.

“I can sheet rock a wall,” Chiappini said. “I’m framing a bedroom in my house now. I learned that through the summer program.”

In addition to the practical skills, Chiappini said there was a social component to the experience that she also enjoyed.

“We were able to meet kids from other parts of the city and other schools that we would have never met,” she said, noting she worked with City Clerk James Lamanna and Comptroller Stephen Spencer. “We were in a department head meeting, and the mayor asked how many of us had worked in the summer program, and more than half the room raised their hands.”

Chiappini started working for the city in April 2020 after 25 years as a paralegal. She worked in Inspectional Services before being named parking director. In a true full circle moment, she has six summer youth workers in her office this summer.

“They’re a great group of kids,” she said. “I take great pride in the summer program. I had a great experience, and I’m happy to see them get the same opportunity.”

Sydney Denham started as a summer youth worker in 2019 after her freshman year at St. John’s University, and she has never really left. A Lynn English product who graduated from St. John’s in 2022 and earned a master’s degree there in 2023, Denham worked in Community Development summers and on school breaks. In May, she was hired as a full-time employee, as administration and finance coordinator.

“It’s exciting to still be hands-on with the summer program, and to be involved in other areas CD works,” said Denham, who assists project operations manager Allison Perry in coordinating the youth workers. “Summer youth is a big program.”

In her full-time role, Denham works closely with the Community Development Block Grant program, which provides federal assistance to expand economic opportunities, primarily for those with low and moderate income.

She said she can relate to the summer youth workers, having walked many miles in their shoes.

“They can come to me for support,” said Denham, who was the first female sports editor of the “Torch” student newspaper at St. John’s. “I’ve been here. Now that I’m in a leadership role, I can help them even more. It’s wonderful to watch their growth over the summer. I’m so impressed with them.”