Every day, our dedicated mentors position students for success by helping them explore their passions and develop the skills they need to thrive. Success extends beyond the classroom, and that’s why After-School All-Stars develops programs that strive to inspire long-term career planning, ensure financial literacy, increase student graduation rates, and provide guidance for enrolling in college and/or career training programs.
We’re especially proud of the “Stars at Work” career exploration program, which introduces students to jobs in their communities and careers they might not otherwise consider. The innovative curriculum behind Stars at Work is helping young people build essential skills and attitudes for success. Students learn interview preparation techniques, visit different work sites, discuss career options with industry experts, and gain valuable real-world job experience.
Putting in the Work
Karime is a 12th-grade student at ASAS Los Angeles who recently interned at ØPUS United, a marketing collective founded by National Board Member Omar Johnson. She says the experience helped her consider career options not talked about in school.
Karime also learned critical life skills like managing money, navigating college applications, resume building, and public speaking. In Karime’s words, “The internship helped us be less shy. It prepared us to be confident whether there’s a big crowd of people or it’s just one-on-one, like an interview. There was one person [at ØPUS] that I connected a lot with. She would always advocate for herself, for what she believes in. That really stuck with me, and I learned from her how to advocate for myself—to not let someone make me feel overpowered, no matter who they are.”
Déjá View?
If this program sounds familiar, it’s because we talked about Stars at Work last June when we highlighted our collaboration with the immersive learning experts at Transfr. In addition to mentorship and hands-on learning experiences, Stars at Work provides students with access to Transfr’s catalog of virtual reality simulations that span 20+ fast-growing careers. It brings job-specific training and career exploration opportunities directly to our students.
Stars at Work is made possible by funding from the U.S. Department of Labor Workforce Pathways for Youth program. The grant is awarded to organizations that pursue innovative strategies to provide young people with effective workforce readiness programs. Chapters that are currently participating include Cleveland, Los Angeles, South Florida, and New Jersey.
