Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Announces Summer Job Opportunities

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Announces Summer Job Opportunities

KIB’s Youth Tree Team will be accepting interested high school students and adult leaders for innovative summer program. Challenge Day is March 6.

INDIANAPOLIS, February 22, 2010 –Since 2006 Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc.’s (KIB) Youth Tree Team (YTT) has been making a difference on the landscape of Indianapolis and in the lives of local high school students.

The YTT is a 10-week summer program that employs Indianapolis high school students and adults. The YTT’s main responsibly is to preserve and maintain the trees that are planted through KIB’s NeighborWoods program. To do this the team spends about 20 hours per week watering, mulching, pruning, and staking trees. In 2009 the YTT watered over 2,000 trees each week.

Individuals interested in being a part of the 2010 YTT should register online before March 5 at www.kibi.org/youth_tree_team. Candidates will attend a Challenge Day at the KIB headquarters on Saturday, March 6 where they will compete in fun obstacles that test their willingness to work hard and get their hands dirty. The third step in the application process is to volunteer at a KIB tree planting on Saturday, April 3. Lastly, youth interviews will be conducted to determine which candidates make the team. Interviews will take place on Sunday, April 25.

Team members are paid an hourly rate and receive a free lunch each workday. In addition to a wage, members gain valuable life skills that range from leadership experience and team building, to job training and environmental knowledge. There are also a variety of planned activities that focus on the creation of lifelong positive experiences. Last year’s activities included: a visit to a college campus, financial management skills instruction, a meeting with a landscape architect, scaling a climbing wall, and a rafting trip on the White River.

The program has grown from 10 employees in 2006 to 40 high schoolers and 10 adult leaders in 2009. Past members recall great experiences in the Youth Tree Team. One member even returned as a youth leader in 2009 and is currently at Purdue University where he is studying Landscape Architecture.

Applications for the 2010 Youth Tree Team can be found online at www.kibi.org_youth_tree_team. For questions about the Youth Tree Team, please contact: Nate Faris 317.264.7555 x 111, or nfaris@kibi.org.

About Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc.
Keep Indianapolis Beautiful (KIB) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s largest community improvement network. The mission of Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. is to unite people to build community and transform public spaces through aesthetic and environmental improvement. To learn more, please visit www.kibi.org.

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