NEW ROCHELLE, NY — My Brother’s Keeper New Rochelle launched the “Take a Student Ambassador to Work Day” last week to provide students with opportunities to visit and explore a variety of work environments.
The event, held April 27 to coincide with the national “Take Your Son/Daughter to Work” campaign, drew 31 students, including a mix of MBK male Student Ambassadors and female students from New Rochelle High School’s Girls Mentoring Club. The group participated in one-day externships at corporations and organizations in Manhattan, New Rochelle and throughout Westchester County.
“I learned a lot about the PR business and the entertainment industry in general,” said NRHS student Basil Harding, who shadowed public relations expert Lizzie Grubman in New York City. “I’m really grateful for the opportunity that My Brother’s Keeper afforded me.”
Student Francisco Maldonado said he was looking forward to learning about leadership from the “influential” Alisa Kesten, Executive Director of Volunteer New York! who was named a “Best Boss” by 914Inc Magazine. “I’m hoping to get some tips on being a leader and learn how to carry myself in a way that Alisa Kesten does.”
“We are thrilled that our students had the opportunity to visit such diverse workplaces and learn about how various companies and industries work,” said Camille Edwards Thomas, House II Principal at New Rochelle High School and co-chair of MBKNewRo’s Student Resources Committee. “We hope they use these experiences to think about their own career goals.”
New York City employers participating in this First Annual Take a Student Ambassador to Work Day included: John Gallin & Son; Credit Suisse; the law firm of Patterson, Belknap Webb & Tyler; publicist Lizzie Grubman and the education non-profit Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE). In New Rochelle, host employers included Mayor Noam Bramson; Rice and Rice law firm; Judge Gail Rice; Judge Susan Kettner; Judge Anthony Carbone and the Creative Learning Center. Host employers in Westchester included The Journal News, Volunteer New York! and Prime Performance & Development.
On April 29, 2015, New Rochelle became the first community in Westchester County to accept President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper Challenge. Five additional communities in Westchester and another 250 cities and towns across the country have joined the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, which is designed to help all students flourish, particularly boys and young men of color.