Welcome to YELL, the summer leadership program for teens at San Francisco Public Library.
“I would recommend YELL to a friend because its a good job opportunity and it help build skills you need for future careers and jobs. I found it to be good learning experience and way to make connection and have a positive impact on your community” —YELL 2025 Intern
“YELL helped me improve my work management along with the boredom of staying home. It gave me the opportunity to visit other libraries and meet new people too.” —YELL 2025 Intern
What is YELL?
Youth Engaged in Library Leadership (YELL) is a workforce development internship program designed for older teens that requires a weekly commitment over the summer. Interns work collaboratively with local librarians and help support STEM and literacy activities and develop project-based intern-led events.
What are the requirements for YELL?
YELL interns are required to attend weekly meetings, orientation and trainings that support content creation and development, execution and evaluation of a team project. Time commitment is 16-20 hours each week. This internship is a great fit for people interested in learning more about the Library, supporting our Strategic Plan (PDF), and working to make our community and Library better for teens.
To be eligible for YELL, you must be:
- Attending 11th or 12th grade in Fall 2026 OR
- A recent graduate in Fall 2025 or Spring 2026
- Between 15 and 19 years old as of June 9, 2026
What are the dates of YELL?
Site placement interviews take place in late May. A mandatory orientation is held at the beginning of the internship. Weekly meetings take place between June and August. It is required that you are present for all (or almost all) of the meetings. This year, the YELL internship will run from June 15 to August 2.
Is this a paid internship?
Yes, interns receive a stipend every two weeks from SF YouthWorks. Every participant who completes the requirements for YELL will also be awarded a $500 scholarship deposited into their K2C or ScholarShare529 account in the fall after the internship is completed.
How does a teen apply for YELL?
We are proud to partner with JCYC and SF YouthWorks to coordinate application submissions. 11th and 12th graders who live in San Francisco are invited to apply.
Applications are now open! Applications close on April 11, 2026. Applications submitted after the deadline will be waitlisted.
In order to be considered for YELL be sure to:
- Create an account with JCYC to start your summer 2026 application using a non-school issued email.
- Select San Francisco Youthworks (SFYW) for Program you are applying to on page 1.
- Review the description of Library – Youth Engaged in Library Leadership (YELL).
- Select San Francisco Public Library” from the drop-down menu to respond to the question “What is the primary department you are interested in?” on page 5.
- List location you're interested in if it's not listed.
Where can I learn more about YELL?
Email yell@sfpl.org. We can't wait to hear from you.