The Shadow of Opportunity:
Job Day Inspires Dorchester Students
By Nanette Cormier
Who’s writing Chancellor Motley’s letters these days? Usually the chancellor himself, as recipients of his heartfelt, hand-written notes know. But during National Groundhog Job Shadow Day, Sandy Rivas, a tenth grader at the Academy of Public Service at the Dorchester Education Complex, was Motley’s “ghostwriter.”
Sandy was joined by 18 other “shadows” who worked alongside UMass Boston employees as part of the Private Industry Council and Boston Public School program to offer teens a glimpse of potential jobs and careers.
Sandy “shadowed” University Advancement Assistant Vice Chancellor Nan Cormier to draft an acknowledgement letter to the Bernard Osher Foundation for its recent grant of $1,050,000 to the Osher Reentry Scholarship Program. “It was cool how we picked the best words to say thanks,” Sandy says. “And amazing to see a check with all those zeros.”
Sandy wasn’t the only one running things. Students from the Noonan Business Academy and Tech Boston studied the hard wiring of computers at Information Technology’s repair shop, helped draw blood for a research study at the GoKids Boston youth fitness center, and reviewed statistics on enrollment at the Office of Institutional Research. Yahaira Garcia, who shadowed Jennifer Skinnon, administrative assistant in Institutional Research, tried to make sense of statistics on student ethnicity. “I didn’t know that the university needs to keep track of so many numbers,” Garcia commented.
Ken Emilinao, a student at TechBoston, learned about all aspects of radio, including production and talk shows, and discovered that “on radio you talk to the audience as if they are a single person” while shadowing General Manager Pat Monteith. “He was the first intern to arrive at WUMB with a solid base of knowledge about digital technologies,” she said. “Ken even taught our staff some new things.”
Shadow host Charlie Titus, vice chancellor for athletics, recreation, special programs and projects, enjoyed the chance to collaborate with Jefferson Pierrette. “It’s good when young people have the opportunity to really experience a work day, even if only for a couple hours. This program provides UMass Boston employees with a terrific chance to connect with our neighborhood,” he said.
Gail Hobin, assistant vice chancellor for community relations, couldn’t agree more. “Shadow Day was a big success because of the generosity of our employees. The ‘shadows’ get a chance to see the university as both educator and employer.” In fact, shadow Kyianne Harewood was surprised by “how friendly the campus was,” and says Shadow Day convinced her to apply to UMass Boston.
Janyll Camacho shadowed University Advancement Assistant Vice Chancellor for Planned Giving Carolyn Flynn. When they first met at 9:00 in the morning, Janyll said she wanted to be a hairdresser.
Flynn’s calendar included a meeting with Associate Chancellor Winston Langley, and she brought Janyll along. In discussing the impact of philanthropy at the university, Janyll said, “Wow. I didn’t know that money mattered so much.” By the end of the day, Janyll had changed her mind about her career. She said she might like to be a professor like Langley. “Clearly the day forged new connections between school and work,” says Flynn.