Last Leadership Session with Exelon Stay in School Initiative

This past Saturday on May 18th, was the very last Stay-in-School (SIS) Session ever. Since 2005, United Way of Metropolitan Chicago and Exelon-ComEd have partnered with organizations like Project: VISION, to provide thousands of students in the Chicagoland area with critical after-school services that keep high school students on track for graduation, help them improve their grades and build leadership and pro-social behaviors. After 15 years, the Stay-in-School Initiative is coming to a close. 

For the past 7 years, PV students have had the privilege to participate in the program which has provided valuable opportunities for students through internships and professional and personal relationships. Every year, 12 PV students attended monthly Saturday sessions to learn about important skills and topics like networking, stress management, professional development and giving back to their communities. Employee volunteers from Exelon and ComEd, along with SIS alumni, provided one-on-one mentoring to students. Students were able to learn and engage with mentors and students from other organizations. The invaluable priceless space that SIS created, allowed young students to dialogue, interact and learn from each others’ lived experiences. At the end of the year, every student had the opportunity to interview for a summer internship at Exelon, ComEd, United Way or at one of the 6 partner agencies. 

Beyond SIS, the impact of this program will be monumental to our organization as a whole. We are forever thankful to our friends at Exelon, ComEd and United Way of Metropolitan Chicago for the invaluable experience and time together. We also want to thank all our partner agencies: BUILD, Corazon, YOU, Gary Comer Youth Center and YMEN, for the time spent together and the memories we have formed over the past years. We are so proud of all our students and all that they have accomplished over the past few years. The time together will never be forgotten! We wish everyone the best going forward and hope we can always stay connected.