Career

May 19, 2025 In Beyond the Fellowship, Career

Translating Insights into Action, and Other Big Ideas 

JEREMIAH PRINCE is the Director of Labor Market Insights within the Research and Evaluation team at Year Up United. For Jeremiah, data isn’t just numbers on a screen—it’s the foundation for making informed decisions that advance social equity. His journey from Brown University to Year Up United reflects his commitment to using analytical skills to create meaningful change. 

During our conversation, I had the chance to learn how his personal experiences with public policy shaped his career path in the social impact sector.

Jeremiah provides a nuanced perspective on how research and evaluation functions within mission-driven organizations are bridging the gap between academic rigor and practical decision-making. He offers valuable insights for both qualitative and quantitative minds looking to enter the field, emphasizing that the translation of data into actionable insights is where the real impact happens. For early-career professionals interested in applied research or program evaluation, Jeremiah’s advice on building a portfolio and focusing on skills less likely to be automated could be the guidance needed to navigate a rapidly evolving job market.

What led him to social impact and Year Up United

AVERY: What led you to work at Year Up United? Did you always imagine yourself working within the social impact field?

JEREMIAH: So I guess I’ll start with, did I always envision myself working in social impact space? Not really, but I mean, as long as I’ve had a career, it’s been in the social impact space. So, it’s more that I didn’t go into college thinking I would work in social impact,. I’m a Black person, and I was going into Brown University. It’s an Ivy League university. It’s a type of environment I would have never seen myself in. I was just trying to do well in school.

There was a recruitment event that happened where it was Brown, MIT, and Yale. They were going state-to-state and holding events that they would invite students to based on PSAT scores, or something like that. I went to one of those events, and I found out about the financial aid that they had. Given my family’s income at the time, I was like, “Oh, this is way more viable than I would have thought.”

Brown, in particular, had some characteristics that I really liked. They had an open curriculum. So you have either your major or your concentration that has certain requirements. But outside of that, everything else is available to you; everything you can treat as an elective.

My first plan was to go into Computer Science and become a programmer. I thought, “Hey, maybe I can work on video games. Maybe I can work in the finance space.” It didn’t end up sticking; after my first semester, I was like, ‘Okay, I’m not doing Computer Science. I’m going to do something else.’”

I ended up doing Neuroscience, because I was interested in the human brain, and then Political Science, because I was interested in politics.

There had been pre-orientation program that focused on people from different marginalized identities. It was just a way to prepare the community to lift each other up, and to also know some of the history of activism and social impact in the Brown University student body. That was a very impactful experience in terms of priming me for a bigger interest in social impact, policy, and politics.

As I took more classes, I started to realize that it was less Political Science that I was interested in, and that I was more interested in Policy. As I engaged more and learned more about the policy world, I learned that there are people whose job it is to use the tools of analysis, data, and critical thought to think about and advise on policies, and to ultimately author and implement them.

As somebody who grew up Black and low income in South Carolina, I benefited directly from certain policies. SNAP, free and reduced lunch, Medicaid, stuff like that. Without some of those things, based on the ways that we struggled, I don’t know that I would have even made it to the situation that I was in. Those things are not equitably distributed by any means, and policy is one of the ways that we can fix that. That’s kind of why I ended up becoming preoccupied with policy and social impact.

I went through the master’s program just to make sure I had the skills that I felt like I needed to actually do the work. Then I got a job through one of my professors for that program. I started working at Opportunity Insights at Harvard, a research institute and think tank focused on economic opportunity. It was a valuable experience working there as a policy analyst, where the goal was to translate research insights to policy makers.

Ultimately, though, it is a research institute, and so the primary goal that subsumes everything else is publishing high quality economics research papers. That’s a worthwhile goal, for sure. But because a lot of my interest had to do with social impact, I wanted to go take these skills that I built in school and refined in this job, and then go into an organization more mission-driven and focused on social impact. Year Up United is an organization I was familiar with in my role because Year Up United’s outcomes for young adults of color who come from low income backgrounds were pretty exceptional. When a job opened up at Year Up United, it was right in my wheelhouse and exactly matched my skill and career stage. I’ve been here ever since.

AVERY: For people not familiar with Research & Evaluation, how would you describe your role?

JEREMIAH: I say ‘business’ as a generic term–but even when you’re doing your nonprofit pursuit of mission, and especially when you need to expand your business or make changes, you just have to make decisions. When you have to make business decisions, then you want to make decisions based on the best information and logic possible. You want them to be informed and grounded in understanding what you’re doing, with a focus on your mission. Year Up United’s mission is to close the opportunity divide through certain programs and systemic interventions, working directly with companies to change the landscape of hiring.

With what we’re already doing, we want to make sure that we’re doing it well and that it’s worthwhile. Research & Evaluation helps ensure that. We use various data collection and analysis methods to get data on how effective our programs are and then relay that information to the people who have control over it or have a stake in it.

A lot of these processes are automated now, at least in theory. Information about how students are doing–retention, grades, outcomes from the last cycle, projected outcomes for the new cycle, survey results–all of that is accessible in dashboards that staff can use to refine or adjust their approach to maximize effectiveness. Or if things are going great, we know to preserve that structure or approach.

When considering something new, data helps make that an informed decision. The lowest quality form of information is just a hunch: “This seems like a good idea.” A higher quality form of information, because it’s easier to share and more transparent, is data.

Quantitative data aren’t the only source of information business decisions should be made from, but they’re a very important source. So, in running an existing business and expanding into new areas, any organization over a certain size constantly makes decisions. Data collection, analysis, and presentation of that analysis help the organization make those decisions in as informed a way as possible.

I spend a lot of time in R and SQL, pulling data, manipulating and cleaning datasets, and producing statistics using tools more flexible and powerful than Excel. Part of my benefit to the organization is that I can do things software-wise that not everybody can do. Something that might take others a long time, I can do relatively quickly. And then, boom: the data is ready in a form that helps us make decisions.

AVERY: How does your team think about “ROI” when it comes to your research?

JEREMIAH: Most of the return on investment comes in the form of development funding. As a nonprofit organization, philanthropic funding is a huge part of our model, as is the revenue from corporate partners where we place interns. Research & Evaluation heavily supports this revenue.

We’re just paying the in-house cost for staff salaries and software. Those costs are relatively low, especially when compared with contracting that work out, and allows us to avoid the resource time it would take to find and vet potential research partners. When the organization shows results, it’s much easier to make the case for philanthropic dollars.

There’s an analysis that shows every dollar invested in Year Up United produces over two and a half dollars of value back into the economy. That helps make the case for investment in Year Up United.

We’re also working hard to ensure the organization’s decision-making is informed by research and evaluation. Year Up United moves fast, with things changing cycle over cycle. In the past, it was less centralized–more local chapters under one umbrella, rather than places implementing the central organization’s programs.

To maximize return on investment, the data needs to come in earlier. Decisions should be based on data, so that we can have confidence that a decision or pursuit will be more fruitful because we tested it first.

Currently, I’m working on Opportunity Management rubrics that we’ve developed. When an opportunity for entering a new market, working with a new employer, or enhancing curriculum comes up, we evaluate it on certain parameters. If it scores highly enough relative to other opportunities that we could dedicate resources to, we’ll pursue it.

The return on investment comes from pursuing better opportunities. Every opportunity to enhance or expand the program’s impact we can take advantage of because of data-driven insights from the outset: literally driving revenue.

AVERY: Do you have any advice for people who might be interested in pursuing Applied Research or Program Evaluation as a career path?

JEREMIAH: One piece of advice that’s common to different fields (but still helpful here) is having a portfolio. Not that someone necessarily needs a portfolio, but the same logic applies. If you had an internship or a class with involved projects, even without full-time work experience, if you’ve done any data analysis (even for school or an internship), save something from that. Make sure you have it on hand to talk about or show someone to demonstrate that you’ve done data analysis before.

When I got my first job, it was helpful that the professor had seen my work through teaching me: he’d seen my project results and presentations. When I applied for Year Up United, one task was to present an analysis I’d done in the past. I had been working a couple of years, so I had plenty of examples, but even one example is astronomically better than having no demonstrated capability. Whether that’s quantitative or qualitative is kind of immaterial.

Some jobs may have a heavy quantitative focus, but what’s most important is showing the steps from information to insights.

If it’s a research project, the insights need to be sound from a research perspective. If the goal was decision-making, then how would someone walk away from this analysis thinking about what decision to make? What would it have changed? That’s more important to demonstrate than any quantitative versus qualitative skill.

The other thing I’ll mention is technology–not just AI as we’ve come to think about it in the current boom. Automation technologies are making advanced data analysis more accessible to less technical people, and this trend won’t stop. Focus on skills that are less likely to be automated–the translation of statistics or data into insights relevant for decisions or narratives.

This requires understanding organizational context, stakeholders, how persuasive different types of evidence are, and potential confounding factors. Navigating all those pieces of information to produce relevant insights is critical.

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Avery Trinidad

Avery (he/him) is the Research & Insights FAO Schwarz Fellow at Year Up United in New York City.

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January 29, 2025 In Beyond the Fellowship, Career

Nonprofit Data on a For-Profit Timeline

ALEX FRONCZEK is a Director of Revenue Strategy, Analytics and Planning at Year Up United. For many people at nonprofits, “data” can feel like a four-letter word. But for Alex, his analytical skills are what brought him into the social impact field. During my second year of the Fellowship, I’ve partnered with Alex on projects for Executive-level stakeholders, and wanted to gather his perspective on the past nine years he’s spent at the organization.

Alex provides a perspective on nonprofit data that expands beyond its applications in Program Evaluation and gives us a peek into what the “corporate side” of a mission-driven organization can look like. He weighs in on what values, tactics, and habits best drive young professionals’ careers, both inside and outside of the nonprofit field.

On imagining himself in the social impact field

AVERY: Starting off, did you always imagine yourself in the social impact field?

ALEX: My journey to Year Up United happened about nine years ago in April. I’ve been here a while. I did not start off my career in the nonprofit or social impact space! I graduated from university with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, and I ended up working for a large for-profit company called EMC Corporation at the time.

Like many young people, the world of work, particularly corporate  America, was new to me. As I was getting adjusted, it didn’t quite feel great. And as a young person, I think that’s common. When you’re in that position, you may be unsure: Is it the work itself? Is this what I want to be doing for the rest of my life? Is it the organization I’m working for?

I remember, maybe a year into the job, telling colleagues that I was going to run away to South America or Africa or somewhere and join the Peace Corps. I just wasn’t getting satisfaction out of the job. And at the same time, my family had invested a considerable amount of money into a four-year degree, right? Degrees are not cheap, and they’ve only gotten more expensive since I graduated.

So, I felt a little trapped. I felt like I didn’t know that I could do something like join a social impact organization and still be in the type of role: this analytical or technical or business-orientated role that I’m in today. I had a lot of misconceptions about these types of organizations. But I knew I needed to do something.

I had to change that overall mission of, you know, “maximizing shareholder value.” It was a publicly traded company. It just wasn’t doing it for me. Ultimately, we spend between 40 and 45 hours per week on average on our job, so you do have to find a balance and have some degree of satisfaction.

AVERY: What led to you working at Year Up United?

ALEX: I was actually recruited to Year Up United by a recruiter. They framed it as “nonprofit, mission driven organization, social impact work.” But we were going to be different. We were going to be like a business, like a little bit of hybridization.

We were going to be focused on numbers and outcomes and KPIs and professionalism. Training these young adults, who came from a background different than mine, how to integrate into corporate America, to gain more meaningful opportunities, and to bring opportunities to the communities they’re in. At the same time, they would be changing Corporate America.

We would be softening that messaging of maximizing shareholder value, and instead, we would be bringing culture and a different set of people into corporate America. Really just changing the landscape. And that felt really, really cool to me.

That’s part of what initially got me on board to work for Year Up United.

AVERY: You talked a lot about analytics and how that was framed as a distinct feature of Year Up United. For folks that work in other aspects of social impact or are considering the field, or even just for folks who aren’t familiar with how analytics works in practice at a business: How would you describe your role?

ALEX:  So, first of all, I think that’s one thing that Year Up United does very, very well. We hold ourselves accountable to the data. We have goals centered around KPIs and outcomes: Full-time Year Up United-related jobs, graduate conversion rates for internship-to-hire, average wage that ties back to a living wage.

Year Up United is positioned to let the numbers and the data guide decision-making. Everything we do goes back to those outcomes of the people we serve and ensuring that the program is meaningful to them. We measure that by the impact that it has on their lives.

The next thing I would say is that analytics is an interesting field, right? Particularly in my role, I sit in-between the business and the technical teams in a lot of ways.

I am not the most technical person. I don’t work for IT. I sit on an Operations team. My official title is “Director of Revenue Strategy, Analytics and Planning.” I support the dual revenue streams at Year Up United, pulling data and running analytics. In our revenue streams, we have corporate partner internship sales, and then we have development fundraising that we do.

As for my team’s day-to-day, there is typically a question that we get asked from someone, usually a senior leader. They may have a hypothesis, and it’s our job to find an answer. Sometimes the answer is based purely on data, but it’s not often.

Many times, I am running data, looking at numbers, then verifying and collecting qualitative feedback from, say, an account owner, or looking at survey responses or looking at even notes in Salesforce. We strive to document everything. So, analytics are part of the story, and the numbers are part of the story, but everything also needs to be verified and double-checked. We need to add that human voice for a lot of it.

Very rarely are you going to find something with a clear cut, black and white answer. So, it’s important to be able to not only run numbers and report numbers: You need to be able to tell the story of the numbers. Whether that’s written word or data visualization depends, and likely it’s a combination of the two.

AVERY: Something that I find has been unique at Year Up United, even when discussing it with other people who work at similar, large organizations like Jumpstart: It is a bit unique that we have a dedicated Research & Evaluation team. And of course, I understand that you’re not on that team, but you work with them sometimes. Many people only understand nonprofit analytics in the context of Program Evaluation. Could you discuss how your role differs, and in some ways, how your role overlaps?

ALEX: Well, one thing that we rolled out in 2024 across the entire organization were cross-functional impact goals. And these are goals that every single person across our entire 800-person organization shares, and they’re really focused on increasing collaboration. Between these different functions–Program, Sales, Research & Evaluation, even IT–we make sure that we are all centered on the same goals and moving in the same direction.

The simple answer is that I share many of the same goals with the Research & Evaluation team, which guide all of our work. I think that was a particularly smart move by the organization, and I’ve seen over the course of the previous year just how impactful and successful it was. I’m seeing more synergy across the organization in the past year than I saw the previous seven years.

We, as an example, all we share the same goal that we are held accountable to: 55% of the participants who complete their internship or work based experience at Year Up United and graduate should be hired directly into their internship partner.  So, when we have the same goals, we may not be doing the same work, but we’re moving cohesively in the same direction. We’re looking at the same thing on the horizon, and we’re moving together.

We just have different responsibilities. Research & Evaluation administers both participant and manager surveys. My team, together with the Internship Sales team, survey those interns’ supervisors who work for a corporate partner, like Bank of America. We want to make sure that our corporate partner managers or internship supervisors are happy and see the value of Year Up United’s training.

Both of our teams are invested in the collection of information from these surveys, what types of questions are asking in the surveys, and that the surveys are being leveraged effectively by the internal stakeholders, who should then be responding to the feedback gathered.

AVERY: You touched upon the idea of synergy within an organization, really putting the “united” into what is now “Year Up United.” And you mentioned earlier, when you were being recruited for this role, that the recruiter framed it in a particular way. Yes, this is a social impact organization. Yes, this is a nonprofit. But in terms of daily function, in terms of how outcomes are measured, in terms of how goals are set, it’s sort of this hybridized model.

You’re pulling a lot of tactics and strategies from the for-profit sphere. What has been different about analytical work at Year Up United, as opposed to your previous position at EMC Corporation, now part of Dell?

ALEX: Huge amounts of differences. I started out in the for-profit space, and I was young. I was very early in my career. As I had mentioned, at times did I struggle with job satisfaction. There were times when I thought the role itself was very, very difficult. And looking back now, comparing my time in that space to Year Up United, the idea that my role at EMC Corporation at the time was difficult– it’s pretty laughable.

When you’re in an organization doing approximately $25 billion in revenue pre-acquisition, you have roughly 100,000 employees. You have so much structure, you have so much process, and you have so many resources at your disposal.

It’s not difficult, right? I mean, it’s the classic pyramid shape. You’re at the bottom and there’s about 40 layers above you.

Analytics in that space was still pulling data out of a system, running it, reporting it up the command chain or the ladder. But you weren’t innovating. Because the way it would work is: “There’s a total org wide number that needs to get reported up.” You have Europe, Middle East, Africa, and you have North America. You have your regions or continents across the globe. And then they each have a number, and then within those numbers, you’ve got all your individual teams. I was just doing a little tiny slice. Long story short, nonprofit analytical work is nothing like that.

At Year Up United, my team is three people, and we’re reporting on all the revenue for the entire organization. There is no such thing as process and structure, because by the time you get any sort of process and structure in place at an organization like ours, we’re innovating and we’re changing. We’re needing to break standards, because, you know, the next thing is here, and we need to remain agile.

At an organization of our size, you either innovate or you die! There’s usually no acquiring a nonprofit.

It’s a completely different world. It’s exciting. It’s amazing. If you like to create, if you like to work hard, it’s a good spot. But there are also no excuses.

There’s no such thing as, like, “Oh well, you know, that’s not my job. That’s Avery’s job. That’s Stephanie’s job.” No, you need to find the answer. You, at a minimum, should have an explanation for why we can’t do this right now, and have a plan for how we’re going to do something in the future.

It is a night and day difference. Some days I miss the old organization. Some days I don’t! Some days I love my job here because of this freedom, this flexibility, and this opportunity to really be creative. Some days I’m tired, and it’s not the easiest.

I will say that the guiding thread is working on something that is having an extremely positive impact on people’s lives. Our mission isn’t maximizing stock price or making the most money that I possibly can and checking out for the day. That’s really what keeps me going. I think that’s the best, strongest, most powerful motivator you could possibly have. I think every one of my colleagues at Year Up United, if you were to interview them, every single person would tell you the same story.

It’s not an easy job and can be very difficult at times. It’s not fun to not have the resources that you need or a process in place. Having to constantly innovate is very challenging.

It’s simultaneously incredibly motivating when you see young adults graduate from our program and hear from them directly. That’s when you see the wages and the full-time jobs. You can hear stories of them being the first one in their family to purchase a home or a car. There’s just so many positive things that really keep you going in a way that I don’t think I would ever personally get from working for a large, publicly traded company.

AVERY: I think there are a lot of things about nonprofits, about social impact organizations of any size, which are driven by a “startup ethos.” Something is always having to be fixed. Always having to innovate, but also having to patch things up. And yes, there’s a lot of challenge, but there’s a lot of reward.

Talking about seeing that reward in action, that positive downstream impact–for a long time, everyone at Year Up United was expected involve themselves in direct service.  The organization has really grown. There are some roles that are students facing by nature and some that aren’t. You’re in a role that doesn’t necessarily involve direct student interaction, but you opt into it.

How important has that direct service element been for you?

ALEX: It’s the most important thing we do. Without a doubt. I can’t even adequately describe how important it is, or even how rewarding it is. When I first joined the organization I thought, “Oh, this is cool, I get to work with students.” And then you do it, and it changes you.

It’s not always easy. You’re dealing with people who have challenges in their lives that can be completely foreign to your own. You might not have even thought of engaging with participants in this way. But when you actually see them in-person and you’re connecting with them: it’s really life changing, and it affects you.

Of course I’ve done direct service. There’s a number of different ways to get involved. You could be a direct coach and in a Learning Community a couple times a week. If you don’t have time for that, you could be a one-on-one mentor, which is maybe a bimonthly commitment. It’s still incredibly rewarding and meaningful for the program participant as well.

I’ll just leave it at that.  It’s singlehandedly the most important thing that we do. It’s the best part of the job, hands down.

AVERY: Thank you for the knowledge you’ve shared. Bringing our conversation to a close and talking about that development of young talent and opportunity-ready talent… What’s some advice that you have for young professionals, be it in social impact or out of it?

ALEX: So, you really, really have to be curious and constantly learning. It could be book learning, it could be watching YouTube, but it could also be social learning. It could be networking. It should be networking.

Because to be honest, your next opportunity is not going to just be handed to you. It isn’t random. Frankly, it’s hard to apply to a job and be noticed nowadays. So, you’ve got to not only be constantly learning–you’ve got to be networking.

If you’re in-person, walk to a different floor. Ask what a team does. “What does your workday look like? What skills do you use?” If you’re virtual, like, go on your company’s org chart and just pick out some folks and send them an email. Say, like, “Hey, I’m so-and-so I work on this team. This is what we do. I’m curious about your team. What do you guys do?” Set up a virtual coffee.

The more curious and the more noticed you can be, the better off you’re going to be. If you want to be kind of quiet and sit in a corner, that’s still doable. Your own team will know you, but it’s going to be more difficult to advance your career.

I would also say being confident goes a long way, particularly if someone taps you for something. What I mean by that is that nobody has all the answers. Nobody has the perfect answer. I think I touched on it earlier, where data are a piece of the puzzle, but not the whole story.

If somebody asks you , let’s say: “Why are renewal rates going down?” You don’t just want to say, “I don’t know. I can’t do that. I don’t know.” You’re not doing yourself a favor. You’re not doing them a favor. They’re just going to walk away dissatisfied saying, “This was no help..”

Offer suggestions. You want to be honest! You don’t want to completely bluff, but you also want to project confidence in your answer. “We could try this. We you could look at this. This may be a cause.” Propose a couple different answers or a couple different factors. You’re going to go a lot farther the more confident you can be.

Two final thoughts. One: don’t let perfection get in the way of progress. Two: learn to set your boundaries. If you cannot articulate boundaries and negotiate timeframes and deliverables with people, it is very, very easy to be completely overwhelmed and underwater. That all goes back to projecting confidence.

AVERY: Thank you for all of your insight.

ALEX: Thank you so much. This was a real pleasure, Avery.

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Avery Trinidad

Avery (he/him) is the Research & Insights FAO Schwarz Fellow at Year Up United in New York City.

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January 3, 2025 In Career, Service, Social Impact

“Education as the practice of freedom”: Why I love being an educator

In the summer of 2020, I made a decision. It was the height of the COVID-19 lockdowns. Since being sent home in the middle of my first year at Wellesley College in March, I’d been living at home in New Jersey, struggling through remote classes, and wondering what to do next. Instead of returning to college the next year, I took a teaching position at the school I’d attended as a child. I would be an extra adult in the preschool classrooms to help with the challenges of social distancing.

How could I become the social justice-minded, liberatory educator I wanted to be, when the landscape of education was so inequitable?

This decision turned out to be one of the most impactful choices of my life. Although I’d thought this job would only be a temporary stop while I waited to get back to my real life, I found myself falling in love with teaching. I loved building relationships with the preschoolers in my class, joking around with them at lunch time, encouraging their creativity, and guiding them through emotional moments. 

I also discovered difficult things about teaching. The work of teaching felt natural to me, but that doesn’t mean it was easy. The more experienced teachers in my classroom became my mentors, and I absorbed the wisdom that I saw in their teaching practices. But I also saw some teachers behave in ways that infuriated me– picking on certain children more than others, raising their voices in anger, or shaming children for their behavior instead of helping them make better choices. These frustrating moments helped me understand my own beliefs and values as an educator, and envision the type of teacher I wanted to be someday.

When I returned to Wellesley College for my sophomore year, I declared my major in Education Studies. I studied under incredible educators like Soo Hong, Deepa Vasudevan, Noah Rubin, and Pamela D’Andrea Martínez, who opened my mind to the possibilities of what education could be, as well as what it has, unfortunately, historically been. For every way that education has uplifted children, broken down barriers, and helped communities fight for liberation, I discovered another way that education has subjugated children, excluded marginalized communities, and worked as a tool of colonialism. 

The destructive and oppressive potential of education weighed heavily on me. How could I become the social justice-minded, liberatory educator I wanted to be, when the landscape of education was so inequitable? There was no way I could fix the education system on my own.

Luckily, I didn’t have to. My professors introduced me to visionary figures in the education world such as Carla Shalaby, bell hooks, and Bettina Love. These authors showed me I wasn’t alone. They introduced me to ways of seeing and practicing education that felt exciting, rebellious, and compassionate. Education didn’t have to be about control and repression. It could be, as bell hooks stated, “the practice of freedom.” I also found like-minded students among my peers in the Education Studies program, who became life-long friends and allies in the fight for educational justice.

My passion for education as the practice of freedom led me to choose a career in the social impact field, where I could dedicate myself to social justice and liberatory educational practices. Through the FAO Schwarz Fellowship, I took a position with The Clay Studio in Philadelphia. My values have really found a home here. With Claymobile, we work to bring arts education to children and adults all over Philadelphia, especially to marginalized communities who are normally excluded from ceramics and arts in general. Every time we bring a project to a site, I truly believe we are practicing freedom with our participants; practicing joy, practicing empowerment, practicing justice. I don’t think Claymobile is fixing the education system on our own. I don’t think we can. But I believe in the impact we make. I love being an educator. In other words, I love freedom– for my students, for myself, for my community, for the world.

 

If you’re interested in learning more about educational justice, here are a few of my favorite texts to start with:

  • Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal, Bettina L. Love
  • Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom, bell hooks
  • Troublemakers: Lessons in Freedom from Young Children at School, Carla Shalaby
  • Lift Us Up, Don’t Push Us Out!: Voices from the Front Lines of the Educational Justice Movement, Mark R. Warren and David Goodman

 

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Emily Lu

Emily (she/her) is the FAO Schwarz Fellow at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia.

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November 26, 2024 In Career

3 Tips for Your First 3 Months in your First Full-time Job

Change can be challenging. I found this to be true as I started my position as an FAO Schwarz Fellow at The Clay Studio this summer. I had just graduated from Wellesley College the previous month. Like many fellows, this was my first formal experience working at a nonprofit. Throughout the beginning of my fellowship, I discovered three strategies that helped me make the most of this very new experience. These strategies were invaluable in helping me thrive during the first three months of my fellowship, and I hope they can be helpful to you either as a new fellow, or as you start your career!

Tip #1: Ask For Help

Starting a new position in a new environment is often overwhelming. This is especially true in the fast-paced world of nonprofits. In my position at The Clay Studio, I found myself constantly having to learn new skills, from the technical skills of processing clay projects from our workshops to the interpersonal skills of assisting a lead teacher in the classroom. This was not easy, and left me feeling overwhelmed at times. 

I quickly realized that I was surrounded by an incredibly supportive and caring group of coworkers and supervisors who were deeply invested in my success. If I ever felt shaky about my responsibilities, my work community was happy to guide me in the right direction. I learned to be proactive about my own learning. In practice, this looked like asking questions (even the “silly” ones), observing the way my more experienced coworkers did things, and asking for feedback on my performance. Developing strong bonds with mentors at my host organization helped me gain the skills and confidence I needed.

Tip #2: Practice Self Care

As a new fellow, I felt a lot of pressure to perform well. Not only was there the internal pressure of living up to the prestigious position I’d been accepted to, I also care deeply about the mission of my host organization to bring ceramic arts to marginalized communities in Philadelphia. This pressure sometimes transformed into anxiety and self-doubt. To keep myself grounded, I kept returning to a piece of advice I learned from a close friend in college: “We’re not machines.” 

In order to maintain a healthy career and sustainable work-life balance, I needed to learn how to give myself enough space to rest and recover from the demanding responsibilities of my fellowship position. I began to set important boundaries, such as turning off email notifications outside of work hours and being more vigilant about taking a full lunch break. I also worked on my out-of-work routines, such as getting enough sleep and cooking myself a delicious lunch in order to set myself up for success the next day. My self care practices help me feel more regulated and energized when I’m at work, and more relaxed when I’m not at work.

Tip #3: Chase Your Passions

One of the most uniquely exciting (and challenging!) aspects of the fellowship is the amount of freedom fellows have in co-creating their work and following our interests within the scope of our host organization’s mission. Fellows are selected for, among other qualities, our passion for social change. I feel that I do the most valuable work when I let those passions drive me. 

My special project, which is focused on integrating socio-emotional learning into the Claymobile’s teaching practices, was particularly open-ended in the first few months of my fellowship. Although the broad scope of my project felt difficult to me at times, my mentors reminded me that the power of choosing a direction of focus was in my hands. I began to feel empowered to follow topics that are close to my heart, such as abolitionist pedagogy and joy-centered teaching. I was able to accomplish personal goals while also helping promote the mission of The Clay Studio. 

I encourage all recent graduates who are entering the workforce to be proactive in following their passions and finding what most inspires them about their work, social impact or otherwise.

 

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Emily Lu

Emily (she/her) is the FAO Schwarz Fellow at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia.

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August 26, 2024 In Alumni, Beyond the Fellowship, Career

What the 2024 Fellows Are Doing Next

This summer, our second-year Fellows finished up and graduated from their Fellowships. Emphasizing their passion for social impact, each of our seven graduating Fellows has secured roles in the social impact sector. Learn a little more about what each Fellow is doing next, and their experience as an FAO Schwarz Fellow:

Jahmali

Upon completion of her Fellowship at Breakthrough Greater Boston, Jahmali joined the International Institute of New England, a nonprofit helping to aid, employ, and naturalize New England’s refugees and immigrants, as an Admissions Specialist.

“While my passion for eliminating classroom inequity led me to my Fellowship at Breakthrough, I’m not as close to the research aspect I was passionate about in undergrad—I now find myself addressing educational inequity research’s findings first-hand. Being able to connect the dots between social capital discrepancies, financial barriers, social belonging, and discrimination to the nuanced experiences of my caseload of Breakthrough alumni regrounded me in my motivations to expand educational equity.”

Learn about Jahmali’s experience at a Fellowship retreat and perspective on classroom inequality:

Jesse

Upon completion of his Fellowship at NYC Bird Alliance in New York City, Jesse remained on with the organization as a Senior Associate, Advocacy, while attending the Graduate Center at CUNY to earn his PhD in Environmental Psychology. 

“Over the past two years, I have built out advocacy campaigns, organized rallies, testified at New York City Council, worked with elected officials, and engaged thousands of New Yorkers in taking action for wild birds. I am most proud of my work with Dustin Partridge, PhD—NYC Audubon’s Director of Conservation and Science—to research and write a guidance memo on drone light shows for the Mayor’s Office, which will soon be drafted into city-wide legislation to protect birds and people from the harmful effects of artificial light at night.”

Learn more about Jesse’s reflections on his Fellowship experience:

Juan

Upon completion of his Fellowship at Breakthrough Greater Boston, Juan stayed on with Breakthrough as a Development and Operations Associate.

“[Breakthrough’s] devotion to long-term support for students, focusing on low-income students of color in sixth grade through college, is something that I wish I had growing up. The organization takes the valuable resources of magnet schools while eliminating the toxic competitiveness and individualistic mindset, and emphasizing key values like spirit and student-centeredness.”

Learn more about why Juan chose to apply to Breakthrough Greater Boston:

Kayla

Upon completion of their Fellowship at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia, Kayla stayed on with The Clay Studio as a Teaching Artist and After School Coordinator.

“Connecting with students on a weekly basis is one of my favorite parts of my job, and being able to provide a fun and safe space for students to make art and chat with friends.”

Learn more about Kayla’s experience at The Clay Studio:

Natalia

Upon completion of their Fellowship at the Museum of the City of New York, Natalia joined both the Morgan Library & Museum and Tenement Museum as a Museum Educator.

“Seeing real objects from the past, close-up and in person, is a powerful way for students to understand that the past was as real and material as their lives now… I have had many students on field trips get so excited when they see the instrument because they recognize what it is and want to share their knowledge with me and the class.  Students also see other stories or experiences that may differ from their own lives during field trips, helping them become more self-aware and understanding of others. “

Learn more about Natalia’s work on field trips at the Museum of the City of New York:

Photo #4 by Filip Wolak.

Sophie

Upon completion of her Fellowship at Audubon Mid-Atlantic, Sophie stayed on with Audubon as Senior Coordinator, Conservation Education.

“One of the most exciting aspects of staying on at Audubon is the chance to see the program I piloted grow and change as the next FAO Schwarz Fellow steps into the role… These past two years have seen me grow into a more confident educator and birder, as well as a leader. I look forward to continuing to grow as I move beyond the FAO Schwarz Fellowship, but I will take with me the wonderful connections that I have made and the support I have received from the fellowship community.”

Learn more about Sophie’s work at Audubon Mid-Atlantic:

Vanessa

Upon completion of her Fellowship at The Food Project in Boston, Vanessa joined Virginia Cooperative Extension as an Associate Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development, an organization that encourages young people to participate in a variety of activities that emphasize 4-H’s “learning by doing” philosophy of youth development.

“One of my highest achievements in youth programming was taking on the role of Youth Development Manager for Dirt Crew this past winter. I found myself able to adapt to not only supporting the youth crew, but also leading them and running the program. This unexpected role was definitely challenging to jump into, but was so rewarding, and I realized how drastically my leadership skills have grown since I first joined The Food Project.”

Learn about Vanessa’s tips for moving to a new city:

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May 28, 2024 In Career, Social Impact

The Art of Transitions–Out of Fossil Fuels and In Life

Transitions can be hard. When we are younger, the next steps are obvious. You transition from elementary to middle school, from middle to high school, from high school to college, or life in the working world. At all of these steps, we are celebrated. Graduation ceremonies and parties can sometimes distract you from the bittersweet aspect of moving on from a moment in your life you will never get to live again. 

I remember trying to choose where I wanted to go to college and thinking that it was the most difficult decision I would make in my life. Little did I know that choosing a college when you have all of the acceptances at the same time seems easy compared to a lifetime of choosing where to live and work without knowing all your options. I’ve been thinking a lot about transitions recently as I wrap up my position as an FAO Schwarz Fellow.

We often come to a tough decision, knowing that we need to make a choice, and become paralyzed.

Transitions have been difficult for me, and I feel like I am just now getting a grip on how to handle the bittersweetness with more ease. Reflecting on my own personal transitions brings to mind another transition that has proven to be difficult for the world: the transition away from fossil fuels, although it is one that, in my opinion, should be neither bittersweet nor difficult.

As of 2023, Pew Research Center surveys indicate that two-thirds of Americans say the U.S. should prioritize developing alternative energy sources, such as wind, solar, and hydrogen technology. In this day and age, getting two-thirds of Americans to agree on a topic is a huge accomplishment. Even though the majority of us agree that we should incorporate renewable energy, just under a third think that the United States should completely stop using oil and gas. This tension is more common with decision-making around transitions–we know that we need a change, but we don’t know how to go about it. Along with not agreeing on how to transition away from fossil fuels, the American public is unsure of the extent to which this decision will affect the country as a whole–in terms of energy cost, jobs, and the economy. 

Countries around the world also agree that we need to change our energy production and consumption. At Cop28, an agreement between almost 200 countries supposedly signaled the end of the fossil fuel era. However, the agreement comes with many loopholes, and even when countries sign on (as seen in previous COP agreements), it does not mean that they will be held accountable to their goals.

We often come to a tough decision, knowing that we need to make a choice, and become paralyzed. But scientists agree that we can’t afford to wait for the perfect solution for the climate crisis. We need everything that we can come up with if we want to slow our emissions and minimize the harm that we do to the environment and ourselves. We need to make the transition now, even if it brings us into the unknown.

When I transitioned out of college and accepted my position as the FAO Schwarz Fellow at Audubon Mid-Atlantic, I made a leap of faith. I took a position in a city I had never lived in where I only knew a couple of people, leaving behind my college friends and the city I knew–Washington, D.C.–for a job that I would have for two years and an unknown future beyond that job. Having almost reached the end of this journey, I can confidently say that I made the right choice. We often look back on our decisions and wish that we had chosen a different path, but I don’t for this one. And I don’t think we will once we take the leap and choose to move away from fossil fuels and into a more sustainable future. 

Sources:

COP28 Agreement Signals “Beginning of the End” of the Fossil Fuel Era | UNFCCC. (December 13, 2023) https://unfccc.int/news/cop28-agreement-signals-beginning-of-the-end-of-the-fossil-fuel-era

Kim, S. E. (December 22, 2023). The Six Biggest Takeaways From COP28 | Smithsonian. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-six-biggest-takeaways-from-cop28-180983499/

Nilsen, E., & Paddison, L. (December 13, 2023). COP28 takeaways: What does the climate deal say? | CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/13/climate/cop28-takeaways-climate-deal/index.html

Tyson, B. K., Cary Funk and Alec. (June 28, 2023). 1. What Americans think about an energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2023/06/28/what-americans-think-about-an-energy-transition-from-fossil-fuels-to-renewables/

 

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Sophie Becker-Klein

Sophie Becker-Klein (she/her) is FAO Schwarz Fellow at Audubon Mid-Atlantic's Discovery Center in Philadelphia.

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May 13, 2024 In Alumni, Beyond the Fellowship, Career

From Volunteer to Fellow: Reflecting on My Reading Partners Fellowship Experience 

Back in college, I wanted to get more involved with my community and give back. I stumbled across a VolunteerMatch posting from Reading Partners. I went to volunteer at an elementary school in Queens. Every Thursday for about a year, I would trek to the school after college classes and work with a 7-year-old student who was sweet and sometimes got frustrated with the difficulties of learning something.

Fast forward to graduation time in 2018, my supervisor at Baruch College recommended an opportunity through the career portal at school. When I logged in to my account, I was surprised to find Reading Partners on the screen. I felt like I was coming back to a familiar place. This was the start of becoming part of a cohort of fellows and the start of my professional career.

At Reading Partners, I gained experience working with a multitude of elementary school students and supported their learning growth around their literacy skills. As a fellow, I was able to provide service to the schools in South Jamaica, Queens. My work also involved recruiting volunteers, which became an area of interest of mine, and I went to work for two other non-profit organizations in this area of work. I was a volunteer coordinator for three years after my fellowship experience and honed my skill set in this area.

Currently, I work as the Foundation Programs Coordinator at the ICSC Foundation. After working for three years in volunteer management, I wanted to pivot my next step in an area of non-profit that I had worked closely with but never taken a leadership role in. And I love it. I enjoy working with students as we connect them with scholarship and mentorship opportunities. I still work with volunteers, as it is key to our work. I hope to grow in the programmatic area of my work for years to come. Furthermore, I thank the fellowship for supporting my growth and my career as I progress in the landscape of mission-driven organizations.

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Erika Apupalo

Erika (she/her) is the Foundation Programs Coordinator at the ICSC Foundation. She was a Fellow at Reading Partners New York City from 2018-2020.

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Alumni Fellows
March 14, 2024 In Alumni, Beyond the Fellowship, Career

2024 Annual Fellowship Newsletter

Each year, Fellowship alums share personal and professional updates, which make up our annual newsletter. Fellows from cohorts since 2008 share what they’re up to, from promotions to new roles, and from new degrees to new family members. 

Here’s a taste of what alums have achieved:

  • Became an executive director
  • Started a new role in restorative justice
  • Moved from Serbia to Zambia
  • Finishing their Master in Social Work
  • Starting an MBA in July

… and so much more! Read our latest Fellowship newsletter to learn more about what our amazing alumni are up to across the spectrum of social impact, and beyond!

 

Read the 2024 Newsletter

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January 3, 2024 In Alumni, Beyond the Fellowship, Career

A Strong Foundation: How the FAO Schwarz Fellowship Shaped My Career

Seven years since graduating from the FAO Schwarz Fellowship and 9 years since the start of my fellowship, the formative experiences, support system, and friendships developed within the fellowship have been foundational for finding and building my professional path.

The value most visible from the surface is a means of accessing a two-year, salaried, entry-level position at a leading non-profit organization. Finding entry-level jobs in the social impact, education, or environmental non-profit space is extremely challenging. Following a long and challenging search, I was hired in 2015 for an FAO Schwarz Fellowship at Riverkeeper, a non-profit organization with a mission to protect and restore the Hudson River from source to sea. After graduating from the fellowship in 2017, I remained on staff at Riverkeeper in various advocacy, volunteer management, and community engagement focused positions for another 5 years. My passion for environmental advocacy, community engagement, and the Hudson River watershed was fully realized while at Riverkeeper and has remained my focus ever since. The FAO Schwarz Fellowship program not only provided an opportunity to enter my desired field, but also provided opportunities for professional development, reflection, and an invaluable cohort experience.

Reflecting upon my almost decade-long career, the influence of the FAO Schwarz Fellowship is clear. I’ve been better positioned to navigate the professional landscape, including salary and benefit negotiations, job applications, creating job descriptions and hiring, and project management.

Below the surface, the FAO Schwarz Fellowship is much more than a means of entering the non-profit sector. 

What isn’t as visible is the relationships you grow within the fellowship network and through the cohort experience. Each year, 6-7 fellows are hired to work at youth- or young-adult-serving nonprofits in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, creating a cohort who goes through the program together and connects through formal methods such as planning and experiencing retreats, working on shared projects within the fellowship, professional development sessions, and informal means inside and outside of retreats. By spending time together, fellows develop friendships within their cohort, and within the cohorts above and below them. These relationships have been invaluable both to my professional development and to me personally—from having understanding and listening ears to talk through how to navigate the dynamics of professional environments, to sharing time-management tools, to finding life-long friends.

Another major component of relationship building within the FAO Fellowship is mentorship: each incoming fellow is paired with an alumni fellow who often shares a career focus. Alumni mentors provide advice, share about their career paths, and support the fellows in thinking through career next steps. These relationships often continue beyond the fellowship, with mentees and mentors connecting at bi-annual reunions and keeping in touch over the years.

The Executive Director of the FAO Schwarz Family Foundation is a tremendous resource. Priscilla has a deep well of advice, support, and kindness to offer as fellows navigate their fellowship roles, but also as alumni navigate future career moves within and outside the nonprofit sector. Priscilla’s support and advice have been invaluable—and her relationships with the alumni network allow her to make networking connections between fellows and alumni.

The Fellowship retreats, which take place twice each year and rotate between the cities where fellows live and work (New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia) are a blend of experiencing the work of each host organization, professional development sessions shaped by the needs and interests of the fellows, and unstructured time for the fellows to connect. Examples of professional development sessions include: disability accessibility and inclusivity at museums, how direct service and systems change work complement each other, personal mission statement development, exploration of leadership styles, and more.

Reflecting upon my almost decade-long career, the influence of the FAO Schwarz Fellowship is clear. I’ve been better positioned to navigate the professional landscape, including salary and benefit negotiations, job applications, creating job descriptions and hiring, and project management.

Advice from Priscilla and others in the FAO network helped inform my decision to return to school part-time in 2019 to pursue a Masters of Environmental Policy at Bard College, which I completed while working full-time.

More recently, in July of 2023, I became the new Director of Environmental Action at the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, a regional environmental non-profit organization with a mission to protect the Hudson River by inspiring lifelong stewardship of the river and its tributaries through education and advocacy. My role sits at the nexus of advocacy and community engagement—collaborating with communities, individuals, and other organizations to protect the Hudson River, and is one I hope to hold for years to come.

Whether I’m between jobs, hiring interns, managing advocacy campaigns, or educating the public, the foundational skills and experiences I had during my time as a FAO Fellow have been foundational to my career, and personal and professional development.

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Jen Benson

Jen Benson (she/her) is the Director of Environmental Action at the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, a regional environmental non-profit organization with a mission to protect the Hudson River by inspiring lifelong stewardship of the river and its tributaries through education and advocacy.

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