High School Club: Try it. You'll Like it.

Well, the new school year is upon us and that means it is time to register for High School Club. As many of you know, the Club focuses on the five C's of College, Career, Character, Community and Culture.

Last year's activities included boxing; a tour of colleges in Boston; a ski trip; two Scavenger Hunts; career speakers in business, fashion, journalism, and the performing arts; a visit from breakdancer and choreographer, Rokafella; an Open Mic; t-shirt design and candy making; as well as workshops in film criticism and college applications. This year we are sure to have as much fun (if not more) so drop by Rosedale to register for the Fall.

If you have any ideas (wishes, hopes, dreams) for High School Club, please post them to the blog.

See you soon!

Job-Training Program Ends

Well the bad news is that the Job-Training Program is over, but the good news is that High School Club will be starting up soon and we will all get to see old friends again.

Our Job-Training Program interns all did an outstanding job! The employer evaluations praised them for their work ethic and enthusiasm. One trainee was even told she was the best intern they had ever had and another was asked to help make an intern promotional video. I'm super proud of all of you and I truly enjoyed working and meeting with you this summer.

Endless thanks to all of the organizations that participated in our Job-Training Program:

Allen & Overy, KPMG LLC, Allstate Insurance, Lighthouse International, Stonesong Press LLC, Spain-US Chamber of Commerce, The Coughlin Group, the Bronx County Courthouse, Mediterranean Shipping Company, Mount Hope Housing Company, Fierson's, Wave Hill Summer Forest Collaborative, and the Rosedale Summer Achievement Program.

We look forward to working with you again!

Community Swim

To celebrate the final day of the Job-Training Program we had an outdoor barbeque. This is the pool we swam in at the outdoor barbeque. This is the food we ate at the outdoor barbeque. These are the job-trainees in the pool at the outdoor barbeque. Lest anyone think we drown our trainees on the last day of program, please understand that this is some kind of fun water game and not a torture method. Those are smiles on their faces. Really.

Standing Tall at Princeton

Here are some pictures from the Job-Training Program's trip to Princeton. Thanks to Shu-jen we have some beautiful pictures of the campus. For many, it was the first time they had taken a college tour. At lunch, we celebrated Jill's upcoming birthday with some delicious brownies.

I think I'm turning Japanese

For our second educational field trip, the Job-Trainees headed to Shiseido (prounced She-Say-Doe) America's offices in Manhattan. We got the VIP treament from our hosts and now we know what it's like to be a guest on Oprah. As soon as we walked in, there were bagels, scones, fruit, coffee, juice and even yogurt granola parfaits for our enjoyment. We sat at the roundtable and heard stellar presentations from the advertising, financial, sales, and training departments. Afterwards, make-up artist Michelle took us through a facial cleansing routine with Shiseido's Pureness line. Once we were clean and dewy, she showed us, step-by-step, how to apply make-up for a natural but fun look. Several of the trainees got a turn in Michelle's chair so that she could demonstrate her technique. My favorite part was mixing lip gloss "cocktails." To continue the celebrity treatment, we got major swag at the end when each trainee and staff member received a goodie bag with lipstick samples, blotting papers, eyeshadow, and a skincare kit. Needless to say, this was very well-received by the Rosedale trainees. Is the cosmetics industry a good career option for women? I would say yes. I really think so. What do you think? And once you've pondered the working world and your place in it, feel free to tell me what flavor lip gloss you are by taking this fun quiz: blogthings.com/whatflavorlipglossareyouquiz/ I'm Rasberry Chocolate.

Let There Be Light!

Rosedale's Job-Trainees payed an exciting visit to Bloomberg News. We liked the modern Asian-inspired aesthetic, from the "rock" formations in the lobby to the fish tanks, art installations, and glass conference rooms. We could see people having important meetings right before our eyes. Our tour guide, Andrew, explained that Bloomberg's design reflects the company's values of transparency and openness. He led us down into the television studios so that we could see an actual taping and showed us a visual timeline of the Bloomberg terminal. Perhaps we didn't completely understand what the terminals actually do, but it was impressive nonetheless. Above the company are condos where someone named Beyonce and someone named Jay-Z live. Bloomberg provides free food to all of its employees and we witnessed many people walking by with what looked like Chinese noodle bowls. If you lived in one of the above condos and were employed by Bloomberg and didn't attend any kind of religious services, it would be possible to work a full week without ever leaving the building. Possibly longer. You wouldn't even miss the sun because of all the windows. There are many compelling reasons to work at a company like Bloomberg besides having direct access to sunlight. What do you think they are?

Rosedale's 2007 Job-Training Program has begun!

We have 24 students placed in internships in Manhattan, Westchester, and the Bronx.

Our part-time students will be going on weekly excursions to such places as Bloomberg News, Shiseido Cosmetics, and Princeton University.

Each week, we will have a posting about some element of work and a question for our Job-Training Students. This week's question concerns the salaries of your favorite t.v. characters. MSN's Career section on careerbuilder.com recently posted an article by Kate Lorenz showing the real-life salaries of fictional characters:

Pam Beesly, "The Office"--Receptionist in Scranton, PA $23,120
Betty Suarez, "Ugly Betty"--Executive Assistant at a fashion magazine $37,180
Detective Lilly Rush, "Cold Case"--Philadelphia police detective $44,000
Lorelai Gilmore, "Gilmore Girls"--Inn owner in a small town $47,420

Question: What is your favorite character's salary? You can pick someone from movies, television, or books. Go to salary.com, CBsalary.com, or Payscale.com to see how much they would make. Be sure and take into account where they live. For example, a teacher in New York City might make more than a teacher in a small town.