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Last week, Student Success Jobs Program (SSJP) participants finished year-long paid internships at BWH and attended a graduation that truly marks their commencement in health care.
Keila Vicente, for example, is a 2005 graduate of Madison Park High School who immigrated to America from Cape Verde alone at age 16. Her dream of becoming a gynecologist to improve the lives of low-income women and their children drives her to overcome financial, social and language barriers. Another participant, Adam Smith of Boston Latin Academy, was one of two students in the state selected to participate in MIT's Minority Introduction to Engineering, Entrepreneurship and Science Program this summer.
Amy Belyea, youth program manager for the Office for Women, Family and Community Programs, manages the well-received program. Valued by their assigned departments, the students leave BWH with solid work experience, but Belyea strives to give them more. She incorporates other elements into the program to ensure students also gain the confidence and self-sufficiency to succeed in life. To achieve that end, she organized one-on-one career coaching with BWH doctors and monthly seminars on topics including nutrition and college, featuring guest speakers like Dr. Selwyn Rogers.
Next year, seven more students will be able to participate in SSJP, thanks to additional funding provided to the program this year. In addition, Belyea will be able to hire five SSJP alumni on summer break from college and provide college scholarships for five SSJP high school seniors at $2,000 each.
2005 SSJP graduates include Lyse Lucien, Christina Tabuteau, Edwin Mejia, Jaleesa Vazquez, Natasha Jimenez, Ricardo Batista, Darnette DesVallons, Keila Vicente, Judelsy Gonzalez, Aileen Perez, Magdalene Brea, Stephanie Mbawuike, Yu Wing Wu, Pierre Jean, Gladys Fashote, Mofei Xu, Porsha Eden, Stephanie Pierre, Adam Smith, Rachel Williams, Amy Huynh, Ezinne Ofoegbu and Emmanuella Renelique.