JAG CT Welcomes Hartford Public High School

JAG CT is pleased to announce that a new program will begin serving students this January at Hartford Public High School.

Keylon Levine, seated at left, joins the JAG CT team and will housed primarily in HPHS’ Academy of Nursing and Health Sciences.  His JAG class will begin after the Martin Luther King Holiday, and Keylon is excited to begin interviewing and working with students.

The expansion is made possible by a grant from AT&T via JAG National, part of a larger effort to bring JAG’s proven leadership development services to more students and to improve states’ workforce readiness. AT&T is a strong supporter of JAG and JAG CT, and its senior Vice President of Public Affairs and Chief Sustainability Officer, Charlene Lake, serves on JAG’s national Board of Directors.

Keylon took part yesterday in a team meeting at New Britain High School. From left are Courtney Sak of New Horizons in New Haven, Lead Specialist Justine Meyer of Manchester High, Keylon, Nicole Jones of Hillhouse High in New Haven, Patty Damiani of East Hartford High School, Richard Hegeman of New Britain High School Satellite Careers Academy, and Emily Carver of New Britain High School.

Welcome Keylon, and thanks to AT&T, the Hartford district, Hartford Public High, the Academy of Nursing and Health Sciences!

Accenture Learns About JAG and Volunteer Opportunities

Employees and consultants at Accenture’s Hartford office learned about JAG CT recently, and are moving forward to adopt a JAG classroom to get more involved.

JAG participant Amanda Flores, who graduated in June from Manchester High, described her experience with JAG, including how her Specialist, Justine Meyer, helped her excel in high school, and is helping her stay on track now that she is working full-time and attending Manchester Community College.

Meyer, who was recently promoted also to Lead Specialist for JAG’s CT team, described how JAG’s relatively small cohort size at each school allows her to spend more time with her students.

We also described the competencies JAG teaches, discussing how they prepare students for success in post-secondary education and the workforce, and how JAG’s student-led Career Association offers important leadership experience for all participants..

JAG CT is also on Accenture’s list of suggested charitable giving opportunities. Adopting a classroom will mean Accenture’s employees will visit a particular classroom on a regular basis throughout the year. JAG CT welcomes guest speakers to discuss leadership and other JAG competencies, and to share their own career experience;  visiting more often lets volunteers build a relationship with students and their Specialist. Click here for more information on adopting a classroom.

Thanks to Accenture’s Hartford Human Reources Lead Camille Lee for arranging the visit!

JAG CT Wins Second Place in National Employability Skills

John Drew, a senior at East Hartford High School, won Second Place in a national employability contest this weekend at the JAG National Student Leadership Academy in Washington, DC.

John is a participant in Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) CT program, and he travelled to NSLA with four other students from Manchester, New Britain and New Haven. All the students attending took part in extensive Leadership Training sessions, with groups that included other JAG students from around the country, and each student will be making a presentation to their classmates and school administrators upon their return. Other students attending were Myleisha Ortiz of New Britain High, Michael Scotchman of the New Britain High School Satellite Careers Academy, Thalia Longo of Manchester High, and Jairo Clas of Hillhouse High School in New Haven. Thalia Longo also competed, in Public Speaking.

The Employability Skills event involved developing a letter of application and a resume for a simulated job opening. Candidates then took part in a simulated interview. Contestants were rated on neatness, spelling and grammar, content and completeness, and personal presentation.

John went an extra mile and also delivered a hand-written thank-you note after his interview.

“JAG has made me realize the definition of hard work,” John said.  “It’s made me realize that when you put 100 percent effort into everything you do, good outcomes will result…Before I was that one kid in the back of the class who would do nothing and cause disruptions…JAG is what unlocked that special part of my brain and made me realize that good things aren’t going to just come to me. If I want to pursue a successful future, the beginning of that road starts now.”

JAG CT is a program of the Hartford Consortium for Higher Education, and is funded with a contract with the state of Connecticut Department of Labor with support from the Court Support Services Division and Departments of Education, Social Services, Children and Families, Correction, and Economic Development. JAG is a state-based national program which for more than 35 years has helped young people graduate from high school and continue to postsecondary success and quality jobs and careers. JAG serves students in 32 states, and in CT is offered in in six schools in East Hartford, Manchester, New Britain and New Haven.