Citizen Portal
Sign In

Council pushes to expand summer internships and revives all‑abilities program; asks for funding plan

Tampa City Council · January 9, 2026

Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts

Subscribe
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

Council backed a plan to expand the summer youth internship program (target 70 slots) and revived a previously stalled all‑abilities/special needs internship program with a $100,000 target budget and bi‑monthly updates starting Feb. 5; staff to present cost and department participation scenarios.

Council heard updates on two youth workforce efforts and set follow‑up deadlines. Brenda McKenzie, director of workforce partnerships, summarized improvements to the summer youth internship program—streamlined online access (tampa.gov/internships), a single contact email (internships@tampa.gov) and improved department outreach—and said FY25 capacity was 48 intern slots. Councilwoman Young asked staff to explore increasing slots; council requested a Feb. 19 return with department interest and a cost estimate to reach a 70‑slot target.

Separately, Councilman Viera pressed to restart the previously approved special‑needs internship program (earlier budgeted but not fully launched). Members agreed to rename it the "Mike Phillips All‑Abilities Internship Program," requested that the program appear on the city website and scheduled an in‑person status update Feb. 5, followed by bimonthly written updates. Council asked staff to identify a $100,000 funding source for the all‑abilities internship by Feb. 5 and to return with details of program operations and partners (McDonald Training Center, other nonprofits) so placements can proceed. Council emphasized community demand and asked for expedient implementation.