A cornerstone of the STEP-UP Summer Jobs program are industry-specific pipelines, designed to educate and engage high school students within a professional field of their choosing. Tyann Christopher, a 2008 graduate from Edison High School, has set her sites on law and is using STEP-UP to give her a head start. Placed at the law firm Briggs & Morgan for the summer, Tyann said “STEP-UP has provided me with a summer job that means something. I am going to work every day to do something I am interested in.” This fall, Tyann will begin her undergraduate studies at Concordia University in St. Paul. One day, she hopes to practice family law because she is passionate about helping youth and feels that children are the most vulnerable group within the legal system.
Patients and families walking into HCMC are greeted with a friendly smile from Martin Campbell and his fellow ambassadors. As a recent high school graduate dreaming of one day becoming CEO of a large, urban hospital, Martin was an ideal candidate for placement in a medical internship through STEP-UP's healthcare pipeline. "Working at HCMC has helped me enhance my people and problem solving skills. I have learned the importance of networking and professionalism," said Martin. Chosen to speak at STEP-UP's year-end recognition event, Martin shared his goal of leading a hospital some day with the crowd. Then, as he stepped down from the podium, he lifted his shirt sleeve to show one STEP-UP staff member that "I've already got the CEO watch!"
As a 2008 graduate of North High, Sirmark Gentry has faced more than his fair share challenges in his 18 years. Having bounced from parent to parent and then foster parent to foster parent when younger, Sirmark found himself homeless for the end of his high school career. Sleeping on a different couch every night, he struggled to let go of family problems and start planning for his future. With the help of “Ms. Arnise,” the Career & College Center coordinator at North, Sirmark eventually found a more permanent home and got in to the STEP-UP Summer Jobs Program. He was excelling in school and in the two high-profile STEP-UP jobs at the University of Minnesota. At the end of last June, Sirmark was slated to speak to a group of business leaders at the Career & College Initiative year end celebration. Sirmark finished his speech with a bit of news – he had just learned that he was the recipient of a full scholarship, room and board included, to the University of Minnesota, beginning in Fall of 2008.
“AchieveMpls, with its helpful, friendly staff, have been a great partner for our school! Our school just made thousands of dollars at a brand new fundraiser which would not have gone off the ground without AchieveMpls’ professional help! AchieveMpls provided a secure and user-friendly website for our event, which allowed us to use a smaller venue and to access a broader donor base. The staff has collected and saved our donations for the specified purpose, acknowledged donors and provided paperwork for tax deductions. Erin Larson and Gina Rysdon have been so prompt to answer any questions (and we had many). Working with AchieveMpls like our own private foundation has allowed Armatage to raise funds for future uses and beyond what is typical for parent volunteers. Our PTA could focus on making our event fun and worthwhile. All of this for 0% surcharge because of the recent MOA. Why wouldn’t a school work with AchieveMpls?” – Mary McKelvey, Parent and Volunteer at Armatage Montessori
AchieveMpls’ Community Learning Fund makes field trips possible for hundreds of MPS students every year. Through mini-grants to pay for transportation, we allow classes of all ages and subject matter to
pursue enrichment opportunities outside of school walls. For the past three years, Nancy Paxson of Marcy Open School has received Community Learning Fund dollars to bring her “Peace Choir” to perform at the annual Nobel Peace Prize Festival. Along with other “Peace Site” schools around the Twin Cities, Marcy works to integrate peace studies into core curriculum. “Marcy students are excited to participate in the
festival each year and really identify themselves as Peacemakers,” Nancy says. “They believe what some of our songs say: ‘We each make a difference! We can change the world! We are the future!
Peace is up to you and me!’”
Wells Fargo is one shining example of how a small group of very dedicated and passionate volunteers came together with their team and really made a difference in the lives of some 9th grade students at Washburn High School. These volunteer “Success Coaches” facilitated monthly small group discussions and activities with students that focused on staying in school, college awareness and access, and career exploration. Students in these groups had the opportunity to “dig a little deeper” with the support of their coaches and the relationships they were building. Together they set personal goals and career goals, took interest surveys, learned about resumes and participated in Mock Interviews. The culmination of the program was the visit 20 students paid to their mentors at Wells Fargo. Here they learned about the myriad of jobs and careers within Wells Fargo, got to experience first-hand what it is like to work in Production, what happens in the IT department when the power goes out, how to create an Ad Campaign and more! Students shared pizza and more conversation with their Success Coaches and new Wells Fargo friends before heading home.
Here are some student reflections on the program:
“It made me think about what I wanted to do later in life and think about the future.”
“It helped me with my school work and I got my grades up.”
“It helped me a lot because I learned how an interview goes and how to make a resume.”
And, most importantly, “Thank you for coming to Washburn, Wells Fargo!”
To get your company involved, call Ann at 612.455.1570.
The Career & College Center Student Leaders (3CSL) is a group of student representatives from Minneapolis high schools that provides valuable insight on how we can best support students as they prepare for life after high school. Xia Yang, a 10th grader at Edison, when asked about the challenges facing many of our students as they think about college and work, said: “Sometimes, the people who have the highest chance of achieving can fall so far behind. Sometimes I get pulled down from peer pressure or thinking too much about what others will think of me, so I am hesitant to do things.” Our job, via 3CSL and the Career & College Initiative, is to provide the interlocking network of support and the enrichment opportunities to students to make sure they don’t fall behind. “But I want to live my life to the fullest, because, as Dr. Seuss says, ‘You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.’ All we have to do is work hard, then go and get it!”