Metro Atlanta teens provided hands-on experiences through AT&T job mentoring

Atlanta, GA – Junior Achievement (JA) of Georgia collaborated with AT&T on September 22 to provide more than 60 students from the Junior Achievement Magnet Business Academy (JA-MBA) at Banneker High School with job mentoring. The teens participated in a job shadow event with AT&T employee mentors as a part of the AT&T Job Mentoring Program. This event was one of many that will be held at JA Areas across the country during the 2015-16 school year. AT&T is seeking to increase the number of students with impacted by mentors in their lives, and intends to spend 1 million hours mentoring students by the end of 2016. 

The JA-MBA is a comprehensive high school program that creates immersive and authentic experiences by integrating real-world experiences and opportunities to transform the traditional high school experience. In its first year at Banneker High School, the freshman class of 150 students is led by six JA-trained teachers who deliver a blended curriculum consisting of traditional common core standards, interdisciplinary studies, and site visits like the AT&T Job Mentoring Program.  

The AT&T Job Mentoring Program aligns with this mission by enabling students to get out of the classroom, engage with the community and get the hands-on training to develop skills for future success. 

"We are grateful to AT&T for giving their efforts and time to provide an authentic experience for our students," said Jack Harris, President & CEO of JA of Georgia. "They not only learn, but actually get to experience corporate culture and some of the challenges that today's employers are facing."

Building on the success of the earlier AT&T/JA Job Shadow initiative, which provided students with more than 100,000 job shadow opportunities, AT&T employees shared life experiences and career advice through project-based activities during the workday. The students were exposed to things as simple as dressing the part and seeing a board room for the first time, to more intricate parts of the business world like balancing client relationships and international business. 

To learn more, visit: about.att.com/content/csr/home/possibilities/at-t-aspire.html

About Community Engagement at AT&T

At AT&T, Community Engagement means engaging our employees to build healthy, connected, and thriving communities where we live and do business. Employees are focused on three key issues: improving educational outcomes, building sustainable communities and promoting the responsible use of technology. In 2013, AT&T employees and retirees volunteered more than 5.3 million hours of time in community outreach activities worth more than $118 million and pledged more than $35 million for charities of their choice through employee giving. Employees also committed to more than 23,500 sustainable choices through Do One Thing (DOT), which invites employees to make small, everyday choices that add up to a big positive impact for themselves, the community and/or the company.

About Philanthropy at AT&T

AT&T Inc. is committed to advancing education, strengthening communities and improving lives. Through its community initiatives, AT&T has a long history of investing in projects that create learning opportunities; promote academic and economic achievement; or address community needs. In 2013, more than $130 million was contributed or directed through corporate-, employee-, social investment- and AT&T Foundation-giving programs. AT&T Aspire is AT&T's signature education initiative that drives innovation in education by bringing diverse resources to bear on the issue including funding, technology, employee volunteerism, and mentoring.

The Goizueta Foundation and Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation grant $2 million for the development of the JA-MBA

Grants will support Junior Achievement's efforts to develop an innovative high school model that prepares students for personal and professional success.

The Goizueta Foundation and Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation have each awarded $1 million to Junior Achievement (JA) of Georgia to support the development of the Junior Achievement Magnet Business Academy (JA-MBA) that will be piloted on the campus of Banneker High School in Fulton County. 

Called "JA-MBA" for short, the innovative high school model is the first of its kind in Georgia. The launch of the JA-MBA represents a partnership between Fulton County Schools and Junior Achievement that provides students the opportunity to participate in hands-on, full immersion learning with a business and entrepreneurial focus. Students will complete three pathways – Business & Technology; Entrepreneurship; and either Marketing & Management or Financial Services. The funds will support curriculum development, teacher professional development, case studies and specialized activities aligned to the business community.

The JA-MBA will be piloted at Banneker High School, located in the southeastern corner of the county, beginning this August. It is open to all rising ninth grade students who reside within Fulton County Schools attendance zones. Initially the program will house 150 students in ninth grade, with the program growing in size as students matriculate to the next grade level and a new freshman class enrolls. At full attendance, the JA-MBA program will serve approximately 600 students by 2018.

JA-MBA will operate as a "school within a school," with the overall goal of driving students to achieve greater educational, personal and professional success. The benefits of the program are expected to extend far beyond the JA-MBA school walls by achieving systemic impacts on Banneker's surrounding school population.  

"The JA-MBA is designed to provide unmatched business connectivity to expose students to professional opportunities and deliver experiences where they can apply their knowledge in real-world situations," said Jack Harris, president and CEO of Junior Achievement of Georgia. "Thanks to the partnership with Fulton County Schools, experiential and authentic learning will be the foundation of the high school experience for the students enrolled in the JA-MBA." 

Ken Zeff, Interim Superintendent for Fulton County Schools, agreed. "We are excited to bring this option to families," he said. "Finding, developing and supporting community engagement and leadership is a hallmark of our charter system model and we are pleased to have established this productive partnership with Junior Achievement to the benefit of students from across our school district."

Programs like the JA-MBA also serve as a way to combat the skills gap and income inequality that plague much of the country, including Atlanta. In fact, according to a recent report issued by the Brookings Institution, Atlanta currently ranks highest in the nation for income inequality. JA has worked hand-in-hand with leaders from the business and education communities to discuss the needs and develop viable education options that are authentic, relevant and engaging to cultivate a generation of highly aspirational and skillful individuals. 

The JA-MBA is designed to provide rigorous standards-based education infused with relevant and engaging learning experiences that prepare students to thrive and meet the demands of today's economy.  Through interdisciplinary case studies and business challenges, students will explore careers while developing an understanding of essential business concepts. The curriculum also will give students hands-on experience through internships, collaboration teams, job shadowing and executive guest lecturers. 

"We have high expectations for the JA-MBA and believe that piloting the program with Fulton County Schools at Banneker High School is the ideal launching point. The overall vision for the JA-MBA extends beyond the initial location with plans to develop a model that is scalable to other schools and districts. JA is grateful to The Goizueta Foundation and Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation for their support in developing an innovative learning model to empower young people with the skills and knowledge to achieve a lifetime of success," said Harris. 

Click here to find out more about the JA-MBA.  

About the Fulton County School System

The Fulton County School System is the fourth largest school system in Georgia. Approximately 96,000 students attend 100 schools in the cities of Alpharetta, Chattahoochee Hills, College Park, East Point, Fairburn, Hapeville, Johns Creek, Milton, Mountain Park, Palmetto, Roswell, Sandy Springs and Union City. The district also serves students in unincorporated Fulton County. For more information, visit www.fultonschools.org.