More than 200 City Year Chicago Corps Members get a Jumpstart through Comcast NBCUniversal Career Day
Event marks 10,000th City Year AmeriCorps members to experience the program…
To help City Year corps members transition from their year of service to the next step in their professional journeys, Comcast NBCUniversal hosted more than 200 City Year Chicago corps members during Comcast NBCUniversal Career Day, held on Friday, April 17th at Price Elementary School. After corps members dedicate themselves to helping students at some of the most under-served schools in the country to get them on the right path to graduation through tutoring, mentoring and after-school programs, Comcast NBCUniversal gives back to those who serve through this annual event. Chicago’s Career Day is one of several being held in nine cities across the country with dozens of Comcast NBCUniversal employees sharing their advice and expertise. Launched in 2005, Comcast NBCUniversal Career Day meets an exciting milestone at this event as it marks the participation of the 10,000th City Year AmeriCorps member.
“One of my favorite aspects of City Year is providing our AmeriCorps members the opportunity to develop as leaders,” said Lisa Morrison Butler, Execitive Director of City Year Chicago. “We are so grateful to Comcast NBCUniversal for its dedication to youth leadership development,”
After dedicating a year of service helping to put at-risk students on the path to success, corps members are ready to take the next step in their career journey. Comcast NBCUniversal employees guide corps members through a variety of professional workshops that focus on career advice, interviewing skills and resume writing tips. Corps members also have the opportunity to network with Comcast NBCUniversal employees and gain advice and insight from the company’s senior leaders.
“Comcast NBCUniversal is extremely proud of City Year corps members. They are an impassioned group of young adults who are truly making a difference, and we are proud to partner with City Year to build the next generation of leaders,” said Charisse R. Lillie, Vice President of Community Investment for Comcast Corporation and President of the Comcast Foundation. “Career Day is a wonderful opportunity for us to give back to corps members for their commitment to serving others and making our communities a better place.”
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A popular feature of the training is an introduction to how to build a personal brand and use social media, especially career-focused platforms like LinkedIn, as part of corps members’ job searches. Studies show LinkedIn is one of the most important job search tools for young people, and this training helps give them the understanding they need to connect with future employers, learn about job openings and make their profile stand out.
Amy Bytoff, a City Year Chicago corps member, said one of the best career tips she learned from a Comcast employee was “learning how to build my professional brand and leveraging that to forward my career. This helped me build my confidence to better build my professional contacts through networking.”
Each day, City Year Chicago serves in 21 Chicago Public Schools in some of Chicago’s most under resourced communities. City Year’s 206 corps members impact more than 3,500 students in focused interventions to improve attendance, behavior and course performance in both Math and English/Language Arts.
Career Day is just one component of Comcast’s multi-faceted national community partnership with City Year. Since 2002, Comcast has pledged more than $80 million in cash and in-kind support to City Year. Comcast NBCUniversal is also proud to support ServiceNation and the Serve a Year campaign, and is a charter member of the Employers of National Service initiative.
About City Year
City Year is an education-focused organization founded in 1988 dedicated to helping students and schools succeed. City Year partners with public schools in 26 urban, high-poverty communities across the U.S. and through international affiliates in the U.K. and Johannesburg, South Africa. Diverse teams of City Year AmeriCorps members provide high-impact student, classroom and school-wide support, to help students stay in school and on track to graduate from high school, ready for college and career success. A proud member of the AmeriCorps national service network, City Year is made possible by support from the Corporation for National and Community Service, school district partnerships, and private philanthropy from corporations, foundations and individuals. Learn more at www.cityyear.org.
About Comcast Corporation:
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation’s largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
With nearly 7,000 local employees, Comcast’s Greater Chicago Region (chicago.comcast.com) serves customers in central and northern Illinois, including the Chicago area, northwest Indiana and southwest Michigan. “Like” Comcast’s Greater Chicago Region on Facebook by visiting Comcast of Illinois, NW Indiana and SW Michigan. “Follow” Comcast’s Greater Chicago Region on Instagram and Twitter @ComcastIllinois.