It's a wrap! Our Spring 2014 Young Professionals Leadership Initiative came to an end on Saturday, March 29. Beyond Expectations works with teens across the entire state of New Jersey. This Mercer County session focused on young adults from the Anchor House Youth Achievers Council, Anchor Link, and Anchor Line programs who successfully completed the six-week leadership training in 3 tracks:
- Careers and Employment Skills
- Independent Living Skills
- Media Advocacy
The objective of our leadership program is to help students uncover their own existing talents, work collaboratively as they learn new skills, and build professional relationships with our facilitators and volunteers.
To address the real issues around independent living, a strong emphasis was placed on budgeting and the basics of finance on "how money works". Executive Chef Kahlil Wyche related hands-on practices in the culinary industry to managing a household budget. During week 5, students had an opportunity to put the instruction to use by developing a budget, selecting the menu items, and preparing a three course meal for the entire group within their budget.
There was a focus throughout our entire program to strengthen communication skills particularly to prepare them for job interviews on the final day of class with our corporate partner AMC Hamilton 24 Theatres.
In preparation, students received direct training from our team of facilitators, Toastmasters, National Speakers Association, and Dow Jones News Fund. They prepared personal brand statements, conducted background research on AMC, and participated in mock interviews.
Finally, through ongoing hands-on instruction, confidence grew as students became more comfortable in front of and behind the camera working collaboratively as part of our production crew. Efforts will continue as we prepare to implement their ideas for the Family Film Screening slated for Sunday, May 18.
Special thanks to the staff at Anchor House, AMC Hamilton Theatres General Manager Gregory Rice and Senior Manager Tracy Brangan, Kat Clayton at Jersey Cares, Dr. He Len Chung's Collaborative Research Lab students at The College of New Jersey, our entire crew of facilitators and volunteers.
Another great program with another group of phenomenal young adults!