"We prepare students to engage in the world that is and to help bring about a world that ought to be."
Students Serve as GO Project Summer Interns
This summer, Friends student, Aqib Nabi, was selected to participate in a unique 5-week internship that offers student volunteers an opportunity to learn and develop leadership skills while working with teachers to assist GO Project students in academic and enrichment classes. GO serves low-income public school students who are typically 1-2 years behind their peers when they enter kindergarten. 89% of the GO students are eligible for free/reduced-priced lunch, a federal indicator of poverty. 49% have a special education classification as a result of a learning disability, speech or language impairment, or emotional disturbance. 45% attend a high need public school. Friends volunteers share that one of the reasons they chose to give their time to the GO Project, either during the academic school year or the summer, is because of the program’s impact on these children’s lives. 95% of students receiving targeted support services through GO show improvement in social and behavioral goals and 85% of students graduate from GO Project on grade level.
Interns this summer served as teaching assistants in K-5th grade classrooms and participated in rigorous daily professional development sessions where the Echoing Green book, Work on Purpose, was used to help them discover and enhance their passions and talents to become change-making leaders in their community.
Senior Director of Community Engagement at the Go Project, Olivia Nunez—a familiar face for many Friends students, as she has served through the years to help them develop deeper understandings concerning educational equity, said, “As with previous years, the Friends students brought their full selves to our GO Saturaday and GO summer programs. It is always a pleasure to interact with them. We appreciate the partnership we have with the Friends community. Students interested in volunteering with us during the school year should submit an application. Or contact Emily Ong, our Volunteer Coordinator to work out time commitment options.”
“For many years, Friends has served as host to the GO Project’s middle school summer program. After construction projects are complete, the School looks forward to opening its facility back up to their public purpose partners. In the meantime, our community continues to be a strong volunteer presence at GO,” said Leitzel Schoen, Dean of Co-Curricular Programs.
To learn more about GO’s mission, programs and impact, click here.
CLICK THE TITLE OF THE ARTICLE TO ACCESS A PHOTO SLIDESHOW.
Friends Seminary actively promotes diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in all its programs and operations, including admissions, financial aid, hiring, and all facets of the educational experience. To form a community which strives to reflect the world’s diversity, we do not discriminate on the basis of race or color, religion, nationality, ethnicity, economic background, physical ability, sex, gender identity or expression, or sexual orientation. Friends Seminary is an equal opportunity employer.
Friends Seminary — the oldest continuously operated, coeducational school in NYC — serves college-bound day students in Kindergarten-Grade 12.
