In 2014, with funding from the Citi Foundation, the CFE Fund launched Summer Jobs Connect (SJC) to directly fund 1,850 jobs for low- and moderate-income youth and help five cities integrate financial education and access to mainstream financial products into municipal Summer Youth Employment Programs (SYEPs). The SJC initiative builds off of each city’s existing SYEP infrastructure, in which they were already providing workforce development opportunities—and steady paychecks—to youth. Recognizing that financial empowerment strategies offer youth a pathway to productive financial habits and longer-term stability, the CFE Fund and city partners learned a number of important lessons about leveraging the SYEP opportunity.