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As graduation edges near the horizon of the service year, our ��ɫ��Ƶ AmeriCorps members are planning for their next steps after service. Last Friday, February 15, 2019, ��ɫ��Ƶ Boston hosted a signature professional development event: 18 Minute Networking, presented by Deloitte. The three-part event featured skills-based workshops, a career and school fair, industry panels, and open networking with ��ɫ��Ƶ alumni!

One such alumnus, Stefan Forrestal-Swaintek ’16 shared, “I had a great experience my corps year at this event [last year], so I wanted to come back and pass any knowledge along.” Stefan is now a Youth Advocate at where he uses many of the skills he learned in his time as an AmeriCorps member like one on one social-emotional support and mentoring.

Kalpita Patel, ��ɫ��Ƶ L.A. ’15-’16 and , kicked off the day of exploration and development with inspiring remarks detailing her ��ɫ��Ƶ experience and professional journey so far. She reminded the corps not to rush and take their time getting to where they are going.

“If you continue to say yes and step out of your comfort zones, you will grow beyond belief.”
– Kalpita Patel, ��ɫ��Ƶ L.A. alum ’15-’16 and Healthcare and Life Sciences Consultant, Deloitte

In the morning, AmeriCorps members elected to attend two of three skills-based workshops: Resume Best Practices, Networking 101, and Job Search 101. In these workshops, they learned valuable insights from and ��ɫ��Ƶ Boston staff about how to launch their career after service. Following the workshops, attendees explored the Leadership After ��ɫ��Ƶ fair and had an opportunity to talk with 12 universities and 28 local and national organizations to explore the many career pathways available to them after service.

In the afternoon there were three industry panels comprised of three of the top career interests of the corps: public policy, non-profit, and working at ��ɫ��Ƶ. The Policy and Our Communities panel featured Ronald Claude, Erina Colombo and Kristen Halbert. Ronald and Erina, ��ɫ��Ƶ New York ’15, spoke about Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley’s election campaign and what it really means to be a staffer in the U.S. Congress. Kristen is the Civic Engagement Director for the Office of City Councilor At-Large Michelle Wu, and she provided key insights about the direct impact of working for local government and its ability to make a change.

Thank you to all of our champions and supporters who came to volunteer their time to inspire, connect, and advise our corps on their bright futures. A very special thank you to all of the alumni who came to serve on panels or speak with AmeriCorps members in our open networking sessions. No one knows better than you how to translate the skills you gain from ��ɫ��Ƶ to the next steps in your professional journey, so thank you for sharing your experiences!