On the Job: Destiny Huffman

TeenQuest graduate Destiny Huffman is working two part-time jobs as she finishes up her bachelor’s degree in business administration with a focus on marketing at Baker College. She is currently working in sales at Barnes & Noble and Experience Community Threads as a manager.

“After I graduate, I plan on looking for a full-time position in the marketing field,” says Huffman. “I am working on updating the resume I first made in TeenQuest with my current work and college experience.”

Huffman explains that the resume she first built in TeenQuest has not let her down yet.

“I have been able to use that template for years,” says Huffman. “It has served me well and I plan to continue to tweak it going forward.”

Learn more about this Carman-Ainsworth Baker Career Academy alumnus’s journey and how TeenQuest helped her on the way.

Tell us about your career journey so far.

Immediately after I graduated from TeenQuest, I went on to work through Summer Youth Initiative and secured a job at the Flint Public Library. The following summer, I went back through SYI and was hired again. After that summer, I applied for a position at the Flint Public Library and was hired part-time.

About a year ago, I was looking for another part-time job and applied for a job at Experience Community Threads. After applying, I immediately got an interview and was hired on as a cashier. Over the past year, I have proved my abilities and was promoted to manager.

A few months ago, I moved on from working at the library. However, I loved the idea of continuing to work around books. When I saw that Barnes & Noble was hiring, I thought that was the next step to continue to surround myself with books.

How was your experience working your first job through SYI?

It was very nice. I think going through SYI, I was able to work a job that was more of a pace of where I was as a person at the time. It was not too overwhelming and was a good way to get into the workforce.

When interviewing for your current and previous jobs, what skills from TeenQuest did you utilize?

The idea of asking questions at the end of the interview is something I have carried with me. I still have the paper they gave us with different examples of questions to ask and it has been a very helpful tool in preparing for interviews.

What is one of your favorite memories from TeenQuest?

A lot of it was memorable. I remember the exercises we did like using teamwork to complete puzzles. We learned the reasoning around other people’s thought processes and learned better ways to communicate.

What advice would you offer current TeenQuest students?

I would encourage them to take in everything that is being taught. It is all very important and can be very useful as they try and get a job.

TeenQuest and Summer Youth Initiative are made possible through the generous support of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.