Work Site Successes

The Work Force Academy has an excellent work site program where students train for careers, sometimes even getting hired at their sites. It is an excellent opportunity for all of our WFA students.

At Morningside, Jeffrey Jones is doing a fantastic job. He is committed to his job and hoping to get hired. Pamela Gonzalez is doing a superior job, especially with housecleaning. For our bilingual teachers, Jorge Aquino is also working at Morningside Hospital and is doing well.

If you go to King's Harbor you will be very happy to see Leslie Porter working (and getting paid) in the OT/PT Department. Tiffany Marks is also working out very well at King's Harbor. Her supervisor could not say enough nice things about her. The supervisors and staff of King's Harbor have an overwhelmingly positive attitude about our students and the service that they provide. Mr. Biggs told me that many of his students have recently been travel trained.

At DOJ, I am proud to announce that Victor Boone is there and he is eager to work. Celeste Green is also a recent arrival at DOJ. Mylana Tucker has had a great deal of success working in the Recreation Dept.

The North Central Bronx Hospital/Jacobi Hospital sites have done an excellent job traning our students in a very short time. One alumni, Luis Rivera, is working full-time in a paid position at Zero International, just one block from our school.

One of the unique features of the Mosholu-Montefiore Community Center is a daycare where Jennifer Almarante is in her last year. Jennifer has come a long way from the bilingual classes of years ago.

Fordham has been a huge success for our school as 21 former students are working in paid, full-time positions throughout the university. Two of this year's students, Justin Dacanay and Jorge Marin, were just hired to work at the college.

The VA Hospital has become a great training ground for other work sites. Justin got his start at the VA. One of the Aim for Greatness Academy students named Rafaelito Del Rosario is doing an excellent job at the VA. He works on a computer in an office where his boss says that he is the perfect employee. The most famous alumni of the Work Force Interns, Jamison Lara, is also working at the VA.

Manhattan College and the Methodist Home for the Aged are also providing excellent training for our students. Jeanette Rodriguez is working part-time at the college in its cafeteria. We have also had great success at Manhattan College with getting our students off of the school bus and onto mass transit.

Lincoln Hospital has been quite a site for us in the past three years. Many students have been hired for excellent positions after having been trained by Ms. Backerman and Ms. Serrano. There are 2 former Work Force Interns working at Lincoln, Eric Layne and Cosiane Gutt. Students at Lincoln Hospital are given such a great opportunity.

The Kingsbridge Armory is one of our three new sites. The students are really offered an excellent training experience at the site. The students basically run the armory and they also keep the grounds clean and well manicured. This worksite has a great deal of promise. Many of the students are also working after school, getting paid by private sector TOP, a special program that reimburses companies that hire our students.

The P10 Teacher's Assist Program is a training program that works in cooperation with another D75 school. Our students work with their students, learning how to be classroom assistants. After they go through the training they work as substitutes in D75 schools. Former 754 students Sashira Duran, Cindy Falu and Lorraine Rivera are all enrolled in this program.