Roughly 350 students filled the ornate corridors of the Massachusetts State House on Wednesday, marching, chanting, and packing Gardner Auditorium as they demanded that Governor Maura Healey and state lawmakers restore funding for summer youth jobs programs. The teens spent the afternoon rally delivering packets of written statements to the governor’s office and legislative leaders, pushing to keep those jobs on the table, as reported by The Boston Globe.
Organizers said the state is weighing about a 40 percent cut to the program this fiscal year, a reduction they say would drop placements from roughly 6,000 to about 3,600. They are asking lawmakers for $10 million immediately to avoid near-term cuts and $25 million to fully fund the program next year, according to The Boston Globe. Youth groups including La Colaborativa and the Center for Teen Empowerment organized the demonstration and pressed leaders such as House Speaker Ron Mariano and Senate President Karen Spilka in the halls of the State House.
Program funding in context
State-supported YouthWorks grants were awarded at about $22.7 million for the 2025 to 2026 program year, placing more than 6,500 young people in paid summer and year-round jobs, according to Commonwealth Corporation. Organizers warned that the proposed cuts would force community providers to eliminate slots and scramble to cover payroll and training costs for teens who have already been recruited into positions.
Voices from Gardner Auditorium
“We youth are the future,” 15-year-old Princess Dubon told the crowd, drawing cheers from students who shared their own stories of why the funding matters. Some described using paychecks to help their families cover basic bills, while others pointed to programs such as MissionSAFE as crucial places to learn job skills and stay busy in the summer. La Colaborativa’s Geneliz Herrera said her Chelsea program already has a wait list of more than 600 teens, and rally co-chair Jormanny Gonzalez spoke about how organizing work helped him support his family and gain experience. These accounts were reported by The Boston Globe.
Where things stand and what's next
After the rally, students marched upstairs to deliver their written statements to Healey’s office and to legislative Ways and Means offices, pushing for both an immediate fix and a larger investment in the next fiscal year. Governor Healey signed the Fiscal Year 2026 budget last summer, according to Mass.gov, and the administration submitted its Fiscal Year 2027 budget recommendations in January. Organizers say those decisions will frame how much room there is to protect youth jobs funding, and they plan to keep lobbying lawmakers as committees finalize spending plans.
Advocates left the State House vowing to keep the pressure on, arguing that summers without robust youth jobs programs would deepen existing gaps for low-income and immigrant teens. With hundreds of students and local groups now publicly weighing in, lawmakers and the administration face growing calls to restore the funds organizers say are on the chopping block.
