G.R.I.T. Program Builds Student Skills, Confidence

For five weeks this summer, more than 150 high school students stepped out of the classroom and into a unique work-based learning experience.

East Hartford High School student Jaelene Rivera found herself working with complex healthcare data.

New Britain High School student Chip Ortiz [above] was still figuring out what career path interested him.

And fellow New Britain High School student Carlos Mendoza wanted to step into an unfamiliar opportunity to explore his options.

“I started off as someone who didn’t take a lot of opportunities just because I was scared of them and what they entail,” Mendoza said.

Building Confidence

By the end of ReadyCT’s G.R.I.T. (Get Ready! Immersive Traineeship) summer program, the three students, along with their fellow interns, walked away with something more than a completed project.

They found a clearer sense of their future and confidence in their ability to succeed.

“Something that I’ve learned about myself is that I can do anything,” Rivera said.

“I definitely learned how to carry myself with a little bit more confidence.”

New Britain High School’s Chip Ortiz

“I definitely learned how to carry myself with a little bit more confidence,” Ortiz said.

ReadyCT Executive Director Shannon Marimón said those kinds of outcomes are a core part of the program.

“We intentionally design a program as part of our mission at ReadyCT to ensure all young people across the state of Connecticut are getting information about the high-growth, high-demand industry opportunities that are out there,” Marimón said during the G.R.I.T. Summer Showcase in East Hartford.

Real-World Projects

Now in its fifth year, the paid internship program pairs high school students with employers to tackle real-world business challenges.

This summer’s cohort worked with 16 employer partners across industries ranging from healthcare and insurance to energy and technology.

During the July 28 showcase at Pathways Academy, students shared their work with employers, families, educators, and fellow interns.

Students also visited employer partners to present their final recommendations and findings.

“These events really energize me as a business professional to see the engagement and the ownership of the high school students,” said Eversource IT manager of customer engagement Dawn Maskell.

“These kinds of engagements teach the students beyond what they get in a normal classroom. It teaches them teamwork, problem analysis.”

Meaningful Experience

Maskell said it was important for her team at Eversource to give the students projects that weren’t just administrative tasks.

“We really wanted to get the best out of their life experience and give them an opportunity to practice and flex more of a business-oriented process.”

For Mendoza and his teammates, that meant analyzing more than 5,600 workplace incident reports to identify trends that could improve employee safety.

“What they did was above and beyond.”

Eversource’s Dawn Maskell

Along with solving a real-world problem, the project challenged students to collaborate, communicate, and think critically as a team.

Maskell said the students exceeded expectations.

“What they did was above and beyond,” she said.

“They made recommendations for how to improve the site, bringing their own unique experiences and inputs into the process.”

Career Interests

For Ortiz, who worked on a project about autonomous vehicles for Travelers, G.R.I.T. was an opportunity to see where his interests might lead.

“I was definitely in that ‘I have no idea’ category,” he said.

“But doing some of the work, seeing what Travelers does, and learning more about other fields, I definitely got to see a little bit more about what I’m interested in.”

Travelers, one of the program’s founding employer partners, sees similar value in the students’ work.

“We believe deeply in you,” Travelers community relations director Kelly Fournier told interns during the showcase.

“You are the future employees that might come and work for us here at Travelers.”

Lasting Benefits

Fournier said the interns’ work often benefits the company long after the program ends.

“I can’t emphasize enough how meaningful the work that you do is to a company like Travelers,” she said.

That combination of meaningful work, professional mentorship, and career exploration is what makes G.R.I.T. unique, according to Marimón.

“We hear repeatedly from our employer partners and others that this is one of the most transformational work-based learning experiences they’ve seen,” she said.

“It’s been extremely meaningful,” said Community Health Center Association of Connecticut workforce development senior program manager Chris Mulhall.

New Perspectives

This summer marked the Cheshire-based organization’s first partnership with G.R.I.T.

Interns worked on projects ranging from artificial intelligence and healthcare technology to improving access to care across Connecticut.

“We wanted to see what the interns came up with,” he said.

“We realized we have our way of doing things and our perspective, but we wanted to see from a neutral third party, another generation.”

For Rivera, that meant working with data and concepts she had never encountered before.

“That’s not something that I was originally working with before, but being able to work with that, although it was hard, it was also fascinating for me to learn,” she said.

Mulhall said the students’ professionalism stood out throughout the experience.

“They took their time off from school, and even during the summer, their time off, to invest in themselves and ultimately contribute to the business community throughout the state,” he said.

Valuable Lessons

While the interns’ projects varied across industries and employers, some of the most valuable lessons had little to do with the subject matter.

Instead, they learned how to work with different personalities, communicate professionally, and navigate challenges as part of a team.

“I learned that a lot of people are different, but also something that I learned is that they all bring their own aspect into the group,” Rivera said.

“A lot of people are different, but also something that I learned is that they all bring their own aspect into the group.”

East Hartford High Schools Jaelene Rivera

Ortiz said the experience taught him how to navigate disagreements in a professional setting.

“I learned that you don’t have to be mean to get your way across,” he said. “There’s definitely nice ways to go about stuff with other people.”

And for Mendoza, one of the biggest lessons was learning to be a better listener.

“I’ve learned how to be patient,” Mendoza said. “I want things getting done my way, but being able to hear others’ perspectives and opinions, that’s what I’ve learned so far.”

Future Workforce

Marimón said those experiences are a critical part of preparing students for whatever path they choose after high school.

“This is work-based learning brought to life,” she told the students.

“We want you to be the future workforce that we know our state needs, our country needs, our world needs.”

“This is work-based learning brought to life.”

Marimón

While the G.R.I.T. experience looked different for Rivera, Ortiz, Mendoza, and their fellow interns, they left with something similar.

They gained greater confidence, a better understanding of the opportunities available after high school, and a clearer vision for their future.

Mendoza said that growth is exactly why he would encourage other students to participate in the program.

“I would tell them to take the opportunity because you’re going to grow a lot in this program,” he said.