Comcast Donates 100 Laptops to Alexandria’s Summer Youth Employment Graduates
Alexandria, VA – Tonight was a big night for graduates of Alexandria’s Summer Youth Employment Program at Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in Potomac Yard. As the graduates took their seats in the auditorium, their faces aglow, their parents beaming, it was already a night to remember in their young lives. But tonight, the 100 grads also got a huge surprise. Comcast gifted the students with 100 laptops to give them a leg up in today’s digital world. The laptops were awarded as a surprise during tonight’s graduation ceremony.
A Digital Leap for Summer Graduates
The City of Alexandria’s Summer Youth Employment Program gives local youth, age 14 to 16, six weeks of valuable job experience, helping them build essential skills for the workforce. Over the past three years, Comcast has donated hundreds of laptops to program graduates to keep them connected, sharpen their digital skills, and accelerate career development.
Zebra spoke to Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins just before she delivered her welcoming remarks.
“This program is about more than just a job and a paycheck. It’s about investing in our young people’s future. It’s about giving them the skills, the experiences, and the opportunities they need for pathways to future employment and career opportunities,” the mayor told Zebra.
Matthew Berson is a rising 9th grader and received the Outstanding Growth Award. He told Zebra his mom was looking for things her son could do over the summer and found this program. He got to work at General Services of Alexandria, where he shredded paper and cleaned up Old Town.
Anais Muheiddin is the youth employment and training specialist. “If I had to sum this program up in one word, it would be opportunity,” she told Zebra in an interview. “A lot of small businesses contribute to our program. They give our youth a bunch of opportunities to get in the workforce, gain workplace readiness, and become exposed to new careers that they didn’t even know of.”
The laptop donation is part of Project UP, Comcast’s $1 billion commitment to closing the digital divide and broadening opportunities. Over the past three years, Comcast has donated hundreds of laptops to program graduates to help them stay connected and develop their digital skills.
Kate Inchi, one of the graduates, told the standing room only audience that field trips were the best part of the program because “this is where I got to see myself in a workforce environment.” Her favorite field trip was a trek to the Innova medical complex “because it was the most interactive of all the field trips.”
Last year, Comcast hosted a meet-and-greet with Team USA Paralympian Trevon Jenifer at the Dunbar Alexandria-Olympic Boys & Girls Club, where local youth got a chance to hear Trevon’s inspiring life journey as a four-time Paralympic medalist. The Dunbar Alexandria-Olympic Boys & Girls Club serves as a Comcast Lift Zone in the Alexandria community – providing free high-speed internet and digital skills training to students and community members.
Veronica Santos-Mazzuchi is Comcast director of external affairs for the Beltway region. “We want to congratulate each and every one of you, not just for completing the program, but for taking a meaningful step towards your future, your dedication, your growth, and your commitment to building a better tomorrow,” she told the students. “You are truly inspiring.”
Among the city dignitaries spotted in the crowd were City Manager James F. Parajon, and City Councilmen Canek Aguirre and R. Kirk McPike.
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