Personal Branding Workshop w/ NSA President Kevin Thompson

Trenton, NJ - We're moving closer to the live job interviews for the participants of our Young Professionals Leadership Initiative. This week, Kevin Thompson, president of the National Speakers Association (NJ Chapter) and Distinguished Toastmaster, facilitated a workshop on Personal Branding.

Our team of facilitators then worked individually to help develop their own personal brand statements and conduct online background research on the interviewing company. They had an opportunity to put their statements immediately into practice during individual mock interviews with Mr. Thompson.

Executive Chef Kahlil Wyche continued his Independent Living Series with an introduction to general budgeting principles. The budgets will be used to help the participants develop a greater awareness of earning, managing, saving, and spending money.

We wrapped the day with a review of media terminology and crew positions as we plan for our annual Spring Film Screening (in collaboration with SCRA - Society for Community Resource & Action) on Sunday, May 18.     

Formal program assessment officially underway

Ewing, NJ -- Beyond Expectations has touched the lives of more than 4,000 families across the tri-state region and we want to better understand as well as document our impact. Through a formal assessment, quantitative and qualitative research will be conducted with students and parents who have participated in our programs.

Under the direction of Dr. He Len Chung, who will lead the design and implementation, a series of research questions were developed to focus on understanding the impact of participation on social, emotional, and psychological well being.

Dr. Chung has over 10 years of experience conducting research with vulnerable youth and families, including those involved with the foster care and juvenile justice systems, and will be responsible for obtaining consent, as well as conducting the research surveys and interviews. 

The research proposal has been approved by The College of New Jersey's Institutional Review Board to ensure that the process is ethically and scientifically sound, and adheres to protocols vetted by the National Institutes of Health and other related projects.   

A number of students and parents have already participated in the assessment which will continue into 2014.

A conversation with Jim: The Riverview Story

Bordentown, NJ -- An up close and personal interview with Beyond Expectations board member Jim Parker as we shares how he came to own and operate Riverview Studios, the project that led him into his career and ultimately his satisfaction in being able to work in film and video production for almost four decades!!

Beyond Expectations featured on Comcast Newsmakers

Leontyne Anglin, director and executive producer, discusses Beyond Expectations youth media programs with host Jill Horner on Comcast Newsmakers.