It’s important to help students with the skills needed to secure internships or that first job out of college,” says Jonathan Chapparo, executive director of innovation and head of Chicago region for Braven. “We’re getting in front of, typically, sophomore students that are the first in their families to go to college or that are coming from humble beginnings.”
He explains, “We know that if you’re a first-gen college student, you’re in school to learn and get that degree, but I think so many of our students are in school because they want to go after the American Dream.”
Chapparo joined WorkingNation’s editor-in-chief Ramona Schindelheim for WorkingNation Overheard at College Board Forum 2024 in Austin, Texas.
He says, “Students generally will hear about Braven through a couple of ways. One – we work very closely with campus staff to ensure that we are getting in front of students that we think could uniquely benefit from something like Braven.
“We’ll work with anyone from an academic advisor to a department chair – to the directors of cultural centers on campus, you name it. We are working with those individuals to make sure that they are talking about the Braven course, the Braven experience across the campus.”
Chaparro says connections are also important in the process, “What we do is help students unlock social capital in those spaces that oftentimes students may not necessarily have access to. And we know that who you know matters so much.”
Learn more about Braven.
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