Members of the Office of Community Engagement team from left to right: Jake Losowski, community engagement coordinator; Kate Flannery, executive director of community engagement; and Cydney Johnson, vice president of community engagement and government relations.
The Office of Community Engagement is committed to a mutually supportive relationship with the City of Syracuse and surrounding areas, to access learning, resources and services among all partners. The Syracuse City School District Education Foundation recently recognized the Office of Community Engagement for that work during the foundation’s recognition breakfast with a community partner award.
The celebration recognizes the dedicated individuals and organizations who go above and beyond to support the Syracuse City School District (SCSD). “We are humbled by the honor,” says Cydney Johnson, vice president of community engagement and government relations. “We work with an amazing team to bring high school students on campus to work and learn within their learning pathways.”
The two main programs that the Office of Community Engagement manages for the SCSD Career and Technical Education (CTE) students is a job shadow program and a summer internship program.
“With the support Pete Sala, vice president and chief facilities officer, and his team, we have high school seniors come shadow supervisors in their area of learning and get real-world experience,” Johnson says. Last year the job shadow program had four students and this year there will be 10 seniors participating.
This summer, the Office of Community Engagement will also be looking to bring up to 30 high school rising seniors to campus for a six-week paid internship experience. The interns will work in an area on campus that aligns with their learning pathway. This program is going into its third summer and has been showing significant growth; it is the model that the SCSD uses for helping businesses develop an internship program for the CTE students.
“This relationship with the Syracuse City School District is possible due to our ongoing support from Chancellor Kent Syverud and Vice Chancellor Mike Haynie,” says Johnson. “We are thrilled and look forward to continued good work.”
