Interview with Maegan Godoy: A Youth Apprentice

By

Maegan Godoy

In Summer of 2024, New America hired Maegan Godoy, the first youth apprentice to join the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA). The Q&A below is an edited conversation with Maegan who joined the New America team as a Project Coordinator youth apprentice.

What is your role in New America? Tell us a little bit about what you do and how often you work?

At New America, I am a Project Coordinator. As a youth apprentice, my job is different compared to my full time and part time colleagues. I typically work around 20 hours a week and I work after my school day ends. While I'm at work or online, I'm responsible for working with our Education Policy Program, as well as the PAYA network. As a project coordinator, I get to collaborate with different teams - I've worked with several different people in these programs, and they look to me to complete projects. I also coordinate meetings, collaborations between teams, and provide input for ideas that program leads implement. I also recently joined the PAYA Youth Council, which will allow me to work closely with a close knit group of youth apprentices who will develop project proposals, and upon completion of the year term as a council member, present our proposals to staff in the U.S. Department of Labor.

How did you find out about youth apprenticeship?

I found out about youth apprenticeship programs from my school's college and career counselor. My sister had an apprenticeship as well, and our school had a small panel of student apprentices to give a presentation to all of us in 11th grade. In April I created a CareerWise profile with the help of CityWorks DC members who came to our school. I found New America specifically from a job posting. From what I remember from the listing, it included information about PAYA, New America, and what they had planned for an apprentice, and I applied. The listing had one opening, and is closer to my school - which is where I often commute from during the day.

What were/are you hoping to get from your youth apprenticeship experience?

I'm hoping to make connections with my colleagues and to network with other people who are partners and fellows at New America and other organizations. My colleagues have already given me plenty of life long skills and tips I can use in real life since I began working in July. When I finish my apprenticeship in 2026, I would like to have established myself as an apprentice, role model, and a young woman with years of work experience.

How do you see youth apprenticeship experience connecting to your future career goals? What skills are you hoping to develop?

I see my experience as an incredibly helpful connection to my future career goals - my future career will require me to have experience in business operations, education, and policy. I'm hoping to develop stronger skills in areas like collaboration, time management, and attention to detail.

What's the most interesting project or task you've worked on at New America so far?

The most interesting project I've worked on was reimbursements for convenings that my colleagues and other attendees went to in the summer and in early September. I found the process to be confusing at first, but once I got the hang of it I enjoyed it because it allowed me to be responsible for making connections with strangers and communicating with them.

What do you wish more of your peers understood about youth apprenticeship?

I wish more of my peers knew about apprenticeships. I know a lot of them don't understand or even know the difference between an apprenticeship and an internship, which often makes them generalize the work experience. I also wish they knew the companies they could work for - all of them already know the financial benefits, but the majority of them don't know apprenticeships are available in sectors like healthcare, business, or IT.

What advice do you have for adults that operate youth apprenticeship programs or want to build them?

I feel that employers and other program intermediaries should market themselves more to youth, specifically to high school juniors and seniors. Since I was a sophomore, I never saw any apprenticeship jobs available, no one I knew besides my sister and other upperclassmen had apprenticeships either. For potential employers of youth apprentices, I would definitely advise you to have a few younger staff as well; younger staff members can be mentors to other young adults in the workforce.

What have you learned during your apprenticeship that policymakers need to know?

Policymakers need to know that apprenticeship is possibly one of the most impactful jobs that young adults and youth can have. For many apprentices, apprenticeships can be a direct pathway to full time employment with the company the apprentice worked for.

By the end of the apprenticeship, what do you hope to have learned or gained?

By the completion of the apprenticeship, I hope to have gained the knowledge and skills I need to become a better individual, as well as someone who has knowledge on project management, business operations, and database management. I honestly hope to continue working in this sector of business operations and education, and at organizations that have similar missions to New America.