Thousands of kids across New York City depend on the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) to occupy their time every summer. SYEP, which has operated every year since 1963, provides minimum-wage jobs and internships to youth aged 14 to 24 over a six-week period. Last year, 151,000 kids applied for just 75,000 slots. The program, however, was in April, the program was canceled due to coronavirus concerns. On April 7th, Department of Youth and Community Development Commissioner Bill Chong sent an email out to SYEP providers, writing “Unfortunately, the uncertainty over how COVID-19 will continue to affect social distancing guidelines, worksite availability, and provider and site staffing as we head into late spring and summer makes it difficult to ensure that SYEP can be operated safely and efficiently.”