During their Oct. 28 meeting, the City Commission unanimously voted to make the local TEMPO organization a nonprofit foundation. TEMPO, which stands for Tallahassee Engaged in Meaningful Productivity for Opportunity, is a community engagement and public safety youth program that was established in 2017.
The TEMPO initiative is administered by the City of Tallahassee’s Community Services Department. Its purpose is to “identify, engage, and reconnect disconnected youth to educational and employment opportunities” in their own communities. People eligible for the program are between the ages of 16 and 24, not in school or employed and interested in attaining “education and employment opportunities.”
Following the Commission’s vote, the Community Services Department will establish a 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation for TEMPO. This will allow for donations, gifts and other resources to be used towards the program’s mission.
The push to create a TEMPO Foundation comes after Community Services claimed a lack of resources that were necessary towards achieving the program’s intended long-term success. These included “computers and school supplies, work clothes, funds to cover tuition and fees” and other educational costs. The creation of a nonprofit will enable local groups, organizations and citizens to contribute to the program’s resource reserves.
The City of Tallahassee has a history of creating nonprofit organizations to facilitate public programs. Previous examples include the Tallahassee Friends of Our Parks Foundation, the Tallahassee Senior Center Foundation and the Smith-Williams Foundation, all of which have “become an integral part of the city’s service model and successes…in quality of life and public safety,” according to the meeting agenda.
City Commission Votes to Make TEMPO a Nonprofit
How do you Motivate someone who can live off the Government their whole life?
Once again... where are the “parents” in all of this, and what expectations are they required to put forth with respect to the child they chose to bring into this world? As for the 19-24 year old “youths”... where are they living now?, how are they paying rent now?, who is feeding them now?, who is clothing them now?, how is that they have a $1000 cell phone and a Fakebook and twidiot account... but can use it to educate themselves, apply for countless grant funding opportunities, or to find a job?
... anyone, anyone... bueller... bueller...
"“identify, engage, and reconnect disconnected youth to educational and employment opportunities” ……………… This looks like it could be a Lively Vo-Tech (college) Program.
How many young people between 16 and 24 who are not in school or have a job and interested in in attaining education and employment opportunities have been identified, engaged, and reconnected by the current TEMPO program? What is the projected increase in the number of young people identified, engaged and reconnected should TEMPO become institutionalized as a non-profit? Are local groups, organizations and citizens not currently allowed to contribute to TEMPO? Hopefully, the city commission will know the answers to such simple questions before voting.