slate of talent drives innovation.
AT&T’s work force is 38 percent
Black, Latino, Asian and American
Indian, versus 34 percent nationally (EEOC). Another major sponsor of the Rutgers Future Scholars
Program is The Merck Company
Foundation, which has pledged
$750,000 over five years. The foundation’s mission: “to assist in meeting the responsibilities of a good
corporate citizen to the charitable,
educational and other worthwhile
needs of the communities in which
it lives.” Merck & Co. is No. 8 in the
DiversityInc Top 50.
“It’s about identifying kids early
enough where they can see a career
path within our company. Clearly,
the area of technical capability is
one we continue to emphasize,”
says Martine, noting that these
scholars will become AT&T’s
recruitment feeder pool for computer science, engineering, technical sales and other jobs.
Skilled Talent
on Tap
Many of the 400 currently enrolled
Rutgers Future Scholars will
become the first in their immediate
families to attend college. That’s
the case for El Salvador native
CORPORATE &
NONPROFIT SPONSORS
AT&T Foundation
(No. 2 in the DiversityInc Top 50)
DiversityInc
Fred J. Brotherton Charitable
Foundation
Fund for New Jersey
Merck Company Foundation
(No. 8 in the DiversityInc Top 50)
New Jersey Resources
Susquehanna Bank
Xerox Foundation
(No. 35 in the DiversityInc Top 50)
To help fund this program,
e-mail Luke Visconti at
lvisconti@DiversityInc.com
For more information, visit www.
futurescholars.rutgers.edu
86 DiversityInc
Future Scholars’ Racial/Ethnic Demographics
43%
53%
45%
34%
2008 Enrollees
2009 Enrollees
LATINO
BLACK
ASIAN
WHITE
OTHER
DID NOT
SELF-
REPORT
7% 3% 2% 3% 2% 4% 1% 3%
Alvaro J. Escalante, a ninth-grade
scholar who took the leadership
initiative to launch a 45-student
Rutgers Future Scholars Club at
Piscataway High School. Although
he’s still waiting for approval from
the district, the club’s mission will
be to help fellow students who are
struggling academically stay in this
rigorous program through instructor and peer support.
“If you have the desire to succeed, this program is there to help,”
says Escalante, who hopes to one
day become a lawyer.
The program increases participants’ academic engagement and
performance, improves time-management skills and spurs career
planning. “We’re trying to enrich
what these students are learning
within the classroom and connect it
to the world of work,” says Program
Director Aramis Gutierrez. From
getting exposure to the college-campus environment to developing
good study habits and analytical-thinking skills, students learn “all
of the things that are transferable
to any and every career,” he says.
Scholars who “stay the course”
can potentially graduate from high
school with 15 or more college
credits in career-related courses.
All sponsorship funds are allocated to student support, including
instructor salaries, transportation,
research projects, facilities and
learning/lab materials.
AT&T views the program as an
investment in intellectual capital.
“A lot of these kids have not seen
what a company is like. They don’t
know what the future could hold
for them if they work hard in high
school,” says Martine, who sits on
the program’s advisory board and
has worked closely with at-risk
youth in Chicago. “We need to pro-
vide an avenue for college, and this
Rutgers program is extraordinary
because it’s our belief that [it] could
become a national program.”
Building a
Blueprint
The goal of this collaborative
effort, which includes public and
private sponsors, school districts
and institutions, is to build a model
that can be rolled out nationwide.
“Giving opportunities to children
who are economically disadvantaged doesn’t stop at New Jersey’s
borders. This program has a huge
national potential,” says Visconti.
Coming soon: A web portal that
will aggregate the best practices of
similar initiatives across the country. By sharing relevant articles,
curriculum and student success
stories with corporations, educators and institutions, the Rutgers
Future Scholars Program can be
cloned in other cities with high
populations of at-risk students.
“What we’re doing is easily repli-cable,” says the program director.
Identifying potential talent and
giving at-risk youth an opportunity is the key “to helping people
find a way out of a life that’s one
of gangs, violence, drug abuse and
other things that happen when
people don’t see another choice,”
says Martine. “Ultimately, we have
to have people to be able to be
self-sufficient and productive in
society—and the only way for that
to happen is education.” I
