MIAMI — As part of the national Year Up initiative, Miami Dade College (MDC) students continue to excel in the program’s Professional Training Corps (PTC). In Year Up’s first year at the college MDC officials said dozens of students received extensive business etiquette training and were placed in full-time professional internships, where all of the participating employers recently gave them high marks for their work performance. Year Up students are now ready to complete their degrees at MDC and embark on a successful future.
“The experience has been very eye-opening,” said 22-year-old student David Frederick, who interned in AT&T’s Core Installation and Maintenance Department in Miami. “It taught me that everything in life of worth is not given, you have to earn it.”
Frederick, who will complete his associate degree this summer, performed so well that he was asked to apply for a full-time position with the company. “I was lucky to be put in an environment like AT&T. My boss and my supervisor were all welcoming and helped me developed leadership skills,” Fredrick said.
MDC’s Wolfson Campus launched Boston-based Year Up in the fall of 2012 officials said, joining a number of colleges across the nation that share the program’s mission of closing the education and opportunity gap in urban communities.
A cohort of about 20 or more students are selected for the program each fall and spring, and for an entire semester undergo training in business development, life skills, along with academic support. Those who elect to continue in the program are placed in full-time, six-month internships where they further their career readiness skills, while receiving college credits.
A school official said that based on U.S. job market demand, MDC geared the program toward technical fields, such as engineering and information technology. Students receive paid stipends from the program and 24 to 30 credits for the year as a stackable credential that will fully count toward an associate’s degree. MDC’s North Campus will offer the program this coming fall semester.
“Closing the opportunity divide among urban youth means giving everyone, regardless of their socio-economic background the opportunity to move forward and excel,” said Harold Lockheimer, executive director for MDC’s Year Up program. “The combination of MDC’s academia and the professional skills provided by Year Up is what makes the program successful.”
For other information contact Harold Lockheimer, Year Up executive director, 305-934-6140, hlockheimer@yearup.org
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