Paid Summer Internships Connects Local Teens to Career-Building
Submitted by Brandon Grant
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – Bank of America recently announced four Broward County high school juniors and seniors were selected as Student Leaders® (#BofAStudentLeaders), an eight-week paid summer internship providing students with first-hand experience in serving their communities. As part of the program, the students are developing leadership and practical workforce skills while working with local nonprofits, including the YMCA of South Florida, all while earning $17 per hour.
With changing economic environments and a shifting job market, young people need access to workforce experience and career skills-building opportunities. The private sector has a role to play to help better position and support young adults to be successful in today’s workforce. Along with the Student Leaders program, Bank of America is connecting more than 215 teens and young adults to paid jobs and internships across Broward County with Junior Achievement of South Florida, CareerSource Broward, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County and the bank’s financial center intern program.
“By providing the pathways and resources for young adults to gain the foundational work skills and leadership experience they need to succeed, we are investing in Broward County’s long-term economic growth.” said Lori Chevy, president, Bank of America Fort Lauderdale. “The teens selected for this paid summer intern program are truly extraordinary but may not have had access to opportunities like this until now. The Student Leaders program is just one example of how we connect people to meaningful employment resources that also builds a stronger pipeline of diverse talent for our local workforce.”
The class of 2023 Broward County Bank of America Student Leaders are:
*Melissa Bermudez: An upcoming senior at American Heritage School, Broward Campus, Melissa serves as the director of education for the nonprofit Nuts and Bolts of Engineering, where she teaches minority students skills in STEM, introduces them to new career pathways, and demonstrates how to make math and science more applicable in their daily lives. She also is the vice president of Girls Excelling in Math and Science (GEMS), where she helps create a united and welcoming community of young girls interested in STEM.
*Steven Goetz: A rising senior at the David Posnack Jewish Day School, Steven is the president and founder of the local Math Circles organization, which connects high school tutors with over 70 elementary students across Broward County. The organization uses tutor feedback to optimize lessons and to focus on areas where students have the most opportunity to improve. As someone who discovered his own passion for arithmetic, he hopes to help inspire the next generation of students to see math’s potential uses in facing social and economic issues.
*Alana McBean: An upcoming senior at Nova High School, Alana serves as the school president of the Nova Key Club, where she partners with numerous local nonprofits to make an impact in the community. Through her efforts, she’s helped grow the organization to over 200 members and helped coordinate volunteer events like beach clean ups and food drives, as well as worked with homeless shelters and animal shelters. She and her organization also take part in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program to mentor younger students in the community
*Bolton Bazile: A rising senior at the College Academy at Broward College, Bolton is the founder and leader of Planting the Seed, a group that inspires South Florida’s youth to have an active role in their community. His group gathered 20 volunteers to help provide a senior citizen residence with care packages and necessary goods. Through his active participation in Student Government, the National Honors Society and the Principal’s Advisory Board, he helped brainstorm solutions to create a stronger school environment and community.
Student Leaders also traveled to Washington D.C. for a week-long, all expenses paid, national leadership summit focused on the power of cross-sector collaboration and community advocacy. At the first in-person Summit since 2019, Student Leaders from across the nation discussed the importance of civic engagement and met with members of Congress.
Started in 2004, the Student Leaders program recognizes 300 community-focused juniors and seniors from across the U.S. annually. The Broward County-based Student Leaders are participating in programming that includes a collaborative, mentor-focused project with the YMCA of South Florida.
Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 68 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs and award-winning digital banking with approximately 56 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately three million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
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