Los Angeles YouthSource System Youth Participants' Satisfaction Survey 2015-2016

The Economic Workforce Development Department (EWDD) has contracted with California State University, Northridge to conduct a phone survey of youth served by the City's YouthSource Centers. These surveys are part of the EWDD's performance management system and are designed to measure youths' customer satisfaction with services received. YouthSource Centers principally serve youth who are out-of-school and out-of-work. The program goal is to re-engage youth in education and or employment through a variety of program activities. Youth report high levels of satisfaction with their YouthSource Center (YSC); the average overall satisfaction score across the system was 9.3 on a 10-point scale. The degree to which the centers met participants' expectations rose to 9.1 in 2015-16 from 9.0 in the prior two years. Satisfaction with how services compared to participants' ideal services increased to 8.9 from 8.8 in the prior year. The average overall satisfaction ratings remain high in all YouthSource Centers, ranging from 9.1 to 9.6. Compared to program year 2014-15, six centers improved their scores and seven centers had the same score or experienced a slight decrease from last year. All these scores are above the 'Star Level' set by EWDD. We also found that 99.2% of respondents would recommend their YSC program to someone like themselves. This indicates high levels of satisfaction. For the 2015-16 year, satisfaction was also high across all program elements, ranging from a low (8.7) for paperwork requirements to a high of (10) for quality of tutoring. Other highly rated program elements were staff knowledge, quality of website, quality and availability of computers, and social and recreational activities. These high ratings show a commitment by contractors and staff to provide a pleasant, positive experience and environment for the youth participants. The level of satisfaction reported by the YouthSource participants who attended a workshop or class, were also high at 9.4 in both 2014-15 and 2015-16. The average rating for quality of instructors has remained 9.5 over the past 3 years. The majority of this year's survey population was female (59.7%). Almost two-thirds of youth surveyed this year were over the age of 19 (64.9%) and the remaining (35.1%) were between the ages of 14-18. Among the 14-18-year-old group, 89.1% reported being enrolled in school while in the 19+ year-old group, 59.7% reported currently attending school. Results showed that youth participants continue to learn about the program primarily through their family and friends (56.4%) or through referral by a school (25.9%). A new trend reveals that youth are learning about the centers through internet search or website (9.0% in 2015-16). This suggests that social media may become a useful recruitment tool. In 2015-16, most participants (69.7%) came to the YouthSource Centers to gain work experience through the centers' activities and services. Participants' involvement in job preparation activities and services increased from 65.0% in 2014-15 to 69.5% in 2015-16. Use of YouthSource services to get help finding a summer job has also increased (from 62.9% in 2014-15 to 64.9% in 2015-16). This reflects the continuing growth of the former summer work experience program, which now operates year-round. The percentage of participants that used support services increased this year. The majority (60.3%) of respondents that received support services got transportation/bus tokens. Support for purchasing uniforms, equipment and school books increased this year which reflects the focus on helping youth to find and qualify for future employment and return to school. The survey findings show a picture of YouthSource Centers that satisfy their customers by providing a variety of high quality employment and education related services.