Jun 16, 2010
Urban youth initiative celebrates 16 years of providing rewarding work apprenticeships; More than 300 graduates since 1994
BOSTON, June 16, 2010 — Six greater Boston teenagers each received a $5,000 scholarship for higher education as graduates of the BNY Mellon CityACCESS: An Investment in Youth* program at a ceremony held today at Goodwill Morgan Memorial Industries. Akwasi Agyeman, community reinvestment bank examiner at the Commonwealth Division of Banks, and a former CityACCESS program participant, delivered the keynote address. A total of 16 seniors graduated from the two- to three-year program, created to positively influence the future of Boston's young people.
Scholarship recipients are:
BNY Mellon CityACCESS: An Investment in Youth is an out-of-school apprenticeship program that offers teenagers the chance to reach their full potential by engaging them in relationship, skill and character building. Thirty-six ‘Teen Ambassadors' from low- to moderate-income neighborhoods receive training in leadership, mentoring, academic success, professionalism and civic engagement.
Funded by the Arthur F. Blanchard Trust through the BNY Mellon Corporate Giving Program, CityACCESS brings together six local community organizations — Boston Children's Museum, The City School, Malden YMCA, Mass. Audubon's Boston Nature Center, MassVote, and South Boston Neighborhood House — to engage teens in meaningful activities, whether teaching science and technology clubs, organizing community service projects for elementary students, or convening youth summits.
The CityACCESS program was established in 1994. Since then, the Blanchard Trust has invested over $6 million in local youth training and educational opportunities. More than 300 teens have graduated from the program and 90% have gone on to attend colleges nationwide.
"CityACCESS has given hundreds of young people vital career-building skills and empowered them to become leaders in their community," said Joanne Jaxtimer, BNY Mellon's managing director of Corporate Affairs in Boston. "Working together, these bright young achievers have seized an opportunity to change the direction of their lives and positively shape their future. They deserve tremendous credit."
BNY Mellon has roughly 3,000 employees in greater Boston, most of them working in its securities servicing, asset management, and wealth management businesses.
The BNY Mellon Corporate Giving Program makes grants, and oversees their use, that are funded through the generosity of the BNY Mellon Foundation and the following eight charitable trusts: The Harriet B. Bayley Trust, The Arthur F. Blanchard Trust, The Alice P. Chase Trust, The Eugene F. Fay Trust, The Herbert H. Fletcher Trust, The Pamela Sayward Trust, The Peter E. Strauss Trust, and The Mary D. Whitney Trust.
BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 34 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, providing superior asset management and wealth management, asset servicing, issuer services, clearing services and treasury services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $22.4 trillion in assets under custody and administration, $1.1 trillion in assets under management, services $11.8 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.5 trillion per day. Learn more at www.bnymellon.com.
* BNY Mellon CityACCESS: An Investment in Youth is funded through the generosity of the Arthur F. Blanchard Trust and administered through the BNY Mellon Corporate Giving Program.