A college degree can be life-changing, opening pathways to career advancement, economic opportunity, and upward mobility. Trio CT is an innovative new college AND career support program designed to break down barriers to success for students across Connecticut. Trio CT and SNHU offer accelerated and affordable degree pathways to increase access to college for talented, passionate working adults. Trio CT provides high touch coaching, career support, and wraparound support services to ensure students have what they need to succeed and earn their degree from SNHU.

• Perform as a strategic thought leader that provides programs and education designed to address bias and discriminatory behaviors in efforts to foster a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive school environment for both students and staff.• Lead professional development workshops for 104 staff members centered around diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. • Partner with the Director of Student Life to organize social justice clubs, student forums, and other social events for over 770 scholars in efforts to create more platforms that encourage students to voice their perspectives on leadership decisions.

• Serve as a key leader in ensuring 100% college acceptance and career readiness for over 160 high school seniors annually.• Oversee the process for assessing the career interests of up to 773 students by establishing goals and providing effective tools to better support each student’s overall academic development. • Supervise the Director of Summer Programs, the Associate Director of College and Career Counseling, as well as Teachers and Counselors, totaling a team of 9 direct reports that assist in supporting the College and Career Services Department. • Lead the expansion of the school’s academic service portfolio by transitioning the organization from solely focusing on 4-year college acceptances, to now providing community college, career trade, and educational support, covering 4 service pillars in total. • Interview, hire, onboard, and train new hires to increase the recruitment and selection of top diverse talent, while also ensuring employee knowledgeability of all departmental goals and regulations. • Coordinate college visits, career fairs, and other scholastic events that increase each student’s awareness on post-secondary education opportunities, while hosting alumni homecomings and Senior Signing Days to celebrate their academic success.

• Assisted 400 students in identifying their best fit post-secondary path through academics, social, emotional, and financial feasibility. • Designed and facilitated lesson plans for 10th and 11th grade students that supported scholars in further defining their college identity, practicing leadership skills, exploring potential careers paths, and engaging in professional networking opportunities. • Facilitated career panels, Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) preparation sessions, YouScience Assessments, and other self-exploration exams to help provide students with a clearer vision on pursuing potential career paths.• Spearheaded Instructional Coach responsibilities by conducting weekly observations and coaching sessions for 3 teachers on classroom management, lesson planning, and culture-building, in efforts to improve their overall facilitation skills.• Provided Academic Advisory support to 15 Sophomores by hosting sessions that addressed each student’s grades, educational development, and community involvement, resulting in a 100% graduation rate of the entire cohort.

• Review 60 grant applications per year and provide recommendations on top candidates to be considered for the AIR program.

• Supported CT Humanities and the Poetry Out Loud Program by offering poetry recitation coaching services and interactive performance art workshops for up to 40 students per year in preparation for statewide and nationwide competitions.

• Created writing programs and curriculums that supported over 125 students in producing their own written work. • Instructed an intensive Connecticut Writing Project Youth Poetry Lab that inspired students to write within specific genres that focused on community activism and social justice.

• Oversaw 5 Counselors with a caseload of 175 students at Central High School, while coordinating a college readiness program that consisted of college tours, career fairs, and exposure activities.• Liaised between faculty, students, and parents by tracking and reporting information on student performance and program services. • Executed a College Readiness workshop series that contained 3 events per year designed to educate students on career opportunities.

• Applied intervention strategies for 84 at-risk students to increase high school graduation and college acceptance rates.• Coordinated an afterschool homework and tutoring program to help develop student critical reading, writing, and arithmetic skills.• Provided college, career, and personal advising to over 100 students through one-on-one and group mentoring sessions.

• Managed 4 Instructors on the Creative Team and 8 Youth Leaders within the Block Captain Youth Leadership program in support of an educational non-profit designed to ignite social change. • Fostered company growth by overseeing the organization’s hiring process, resulting in the increase of staff from 8 to 24 employees. • Directed 8 shows with an audience of up to 253 people per show, resulting in overall company growth and audience satisfaction.• Established The Morgan Penn Scholarship for the Leadership in Social Change scholarship fund.

• Collaborated with community partners such as New London Student Affairs, to effectively train and mentor youth each summer.• Co-wrote grants to gain additional funding for specified projects, in efforts to better support the each production financially.

• Integrated mainstream art forms into program recruitment strategies to increase student participation every summer, resulting in over 20 students participating in acting and writing courses to further develop their artistic skillset.• Encouraged student involvement by creating support services to improve writing skills, self-confidence, leadership, and teamwork.

• Facilitated female empowerment workshops that educated 103 students on hygiene, self-image, and overcoming adversity. • Hosted a literacy program that donated and read books to students in a Cross-cultural Symposium at the US Embassy in Accra.• Implemented literacy readiness initiatives in the Village of Konko with 2015 Newbery Award Recipient, Kwame Alexander.

• Facilitated a youth activist group for 15 students centered around social injustice and community activism-based curriculum.• Built local program partnerships to help implement a Teen Leadership Institute community project, as well as a district-wide program recruitment campaign.