A support program that provides mentoring for local Latina students will be expanded thanks to a $50,000 gift from AT&T. Guests from AT&T met with mentees and their Latina mentors from Fordham at a check presentation reception on Oct. 14 at Tognino Hall on the Rose Hill campus.
Run by the Graduate School of Social Service, Mentoring Latinas addresses the unique challenges faced by Latina adolescents by pairing them with Latina college students who can guide and assist them and inspire them to pursue higher education.
“The valuable work that Mentoring Latinas does would not be possible this year without the largesse of AT&T,” said Ellen Silber, Ph.D., director of Mentoring Latinas. “AT&T is a big company with a big heart, one that cares, as we do, about the future of adolescent Latinas.”
Working with students from Thomas Giordano Middle School since 2003, Mentoring Latinas is now able to expand to New World High School due to the AT&T grant.
Leonard Cali (FCRH ’82), senior vice president of wireless services and international external affairs at AT&T, spoke directly to the assembled middle and high school students. “What this is really about is helping you succeed in school so you can choose what you want, so you have options,” he said. “Education is all about enriching your life and giving you opportunities.”