Networking Opens Doors for Students

There is no shortage of ambition at Citizen Schools. Our students dream of becoming doctors, lawyers, scientists and engineers. Earlier this month, Citizen Schools' 8th Grade Academy program in California hosted an event aimed at helping students learn the networking skills that they need to make those dreams come true. Together, over 100 volunteers from a diverse list of companies and organizations attended the "6 Degrees of the Bay Area" event hosted by VISA and Google. The event offered 150 8th Grade Academy students the opportunity to practice and refine the critical life skills of networking and interviewing. Students worked with volunteers to introduce themselves to community leaders from across the area and explore the available resources that can help pave the path to their dream jobs.

"The event was very interesting," recalls Estefania, an eighth grader at the McKinley Institute of Technology in Redwood City where Citizen Schools runs programs. "I learned about jobs I've never heard of. I never knew there were businesses that invested in other businesses!"

Event sponsors - VISA, Google, Goldman Sachs, EMC and Bank of America.