While you have earned your spot in training, everything has just begun. Summer training is only a small portion of the entire story, and it is up to you to fill the rest of it.  My name is Patience Kollie. I am part of the Class of 2020, and during this time I didn’t know what to do, what to expect, or what I would be after this training.

Summer training has gone virtual this year, which has prompted even more innovation. This summer, we will be hosting our first-ever Virtual Tech Conference, featuring Genesys Works alumni, tech trainers, corporate supervisors, and other experts in the technology industry.

Executive director Karen Marben will be stepping down from her position after five years of leadership for Genesys Works Twin Cities. In June 2015, Karen Marben joined the team as the organization’s second executive director. Under her leadership, nearly 1,300 high school students earned a year-long business technology internship, and programming expanded significantly to incorporate opportunities for post-secondary students.

We’re entering an exciting phase in the Talent Development Pipeline (TDP) program. This year, Genesys Works young professionals are beginning to exit the program for the very reason they enter it: to launch their career! Our first individual to move into his first official career role is – drumroll, please – Kyle Lee!  Find out more about Kyle and his first career moves, and stay tuned for more individuals to be added to the official “Career Launched” list!

Throughout the 2019-2020 internship year, our Genesys Works young professionals and their supervisors have demonstrated more creativity and perseverance than we ever could have imagined! No matter what challenges this year provided, they stepped up to the task at hand and continued to create meaningful internship experiences. This June, as we wrap up our school year internships and transition into training our new class of students, we wanted to remind you of all our featured interns and supervisors!

Systemic racism and racial trauma is not new. So, as we move forward, it is important we do so with increasing awareness and urgency in order to create a more equitable future and disrupt systems of oppression for our Twin Cities youth. Read on for a bit more education on how Juneteenth came to be.