Juliana Velandia's story of success in the school to work program at the Simon Youth Academy at Terrace at The Florida Mall was reported in the Orlando Sentinel on Oct. 6, 2011, by journalist Lauren Roth, who covers the Orange County Public Schools system for the paper.
You can read the Orlando Sentinel's story on Simon Youth Foundation and its impact on Juliana and other students using this link.
In the article, Roth writes about the success of the overall school to work program in Orange County, reporting a combined graduation rate of more than 85 percent at the Simon Youth Academy and two other non-traditional high schools in the district that use the program.
ORIGINAL POST ON FRIDAY, SEPT. 19
TransPremier LLC, a trucking company in Orlando, Fla., is enjoying unprecedented cash flow, according to the small business’s President, Sergio Guarnizo, and this is despite the down economy.
And it is all thanks to a 19-year-old high school student Guarnizo says.
“Juliana handles all of our invoices, and I find them on my desk very quickly after jobs have been closed,” Guarnizo says. “She is making my business more efficient, we have better cash flow, and this is making us more successful than ever.”
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| Juliana Velandia at her Trans Premier LLC desk |
The academy operates under a unique school-to-work program that requires its students to maintain regular employment. Velandia started working with TransPremier LLC in November, 2010.
“I like the work and have learned a lot about how successful I can be, because the company trusts me and teaches me new skills,” Velandia says.
“Juliana is a great success story; because she is making a real impact for her employer, and the experience is making a real impact on her,” says E.J. Shiver, the jobs coordinator at Juliana's academy who is in charge of connecting students with viable work opportunities.
Shiver says that all of his students complete the same hiring process as other job candidates for a particular position, making applications and completing interviews. He simply does the research on where jobs are available and how well they match with the skills and abilities of specific students.
Currently, 14 academy students have secured regular work for the academic year. Three were just hired on Sept. 12, 2011, by Chick-fil-a, and a total of six have found work in businesses that operate at The Florida Mall, taking advantage of the school’s location on the Simon mall’s property.
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| Velandia manages invoicing for all of the jobs completed by Trans Premier LLC's large fleet of trucks |
“Juliana is helping us be a better company, but I also have seen how this experience is good for her. She is more confident, professional, happier and interested in advancing her career,” Guarnizo says. “She now has hope for the future.”
Shiver believes the academy’s students, many of whom had been considered at-risk for dropping out, are now well ahead of their peers as they prepare for a post-secondary education or a career, because they have real-world experiences and skills to draw from as they advance.
“In helping connect students with job opportunities, you could say that I am helping put the students on the path to success, but ultimately they have to travel the road on their own,” Shiver says. “That journey is making them better young people, and it is making their future much brighter.”
Velandia says her future seems brighter by the day. She’s already received a $1.50 an hour raise in her first 10 months on the job, and Guarnizo says another bump in pay is on the horizon. Velandia also has plans to enroll in college.
“I like the trucking industry very much, and I want to get an education to learn the skills that will help me help my company,” she says. “I can see myself working with TransPremier LLC for a long time.”
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