2020 2021
Student Leadership Network
Yearbook
CONTENTS
4
LETTER FROM THE CEO
5
BACK TO SCHOOL
6
(EM)POWER BREAKFAST
7
DAY OF THE GIRL SL NETWORK ADVISORY COMMITTEE
8-9
DIRECTORS OF COLLEGE COUNSELING
10
CELEBRATING WOMEN'S MONTH
11
VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION
12
ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT HIGHLIGHTS
13
CELEBRATING OUR CBI NETWORK
14 - 18
TYWLS GRADUATIONS
19
YWLN HIGHLIGHTS
20
CLASS OF 2021
21
LOOKING AHEAD
For the first time in the history of NYC public schools, students spent an entire school year learning through their electronic devices from home. With the 2020-21 school year now finished, I continue to be in awe of our students' relentless commitment and everything they’ve accomplished this year. If nothing else, I am grateful this past year gave us the opportunity to be creative and evolve the way we support our students – past, present, and future. Even as the world returns to normal and we look forward to full-time, in-person school in the fall, we’re excited to carry our virtual and
Letter from the CEO digital innovations forward. With new ways to connect with our community nationwide, we are striving to impact even more students every day. As we enter our 25th year of service, we’ll be taking time to reflect on how far we’ve come and the many lessons we've learned along the way. Our view to the next 25 years looks brighter than ever!
Back to School The school year began unlike any other. Across our network, students logged into virtual classrooms while others made their way back to the hallways of their schools in a limited capacity.
Our educators kept students engaged and focused on their studiesand in this unprecedented academic year, we are in even greater awe of their creativity, resourcefulness, and tenacity.
(Em)Power Breakfast Our 14th Annual (Em)Power Breakfast celebrated the dedication and achievements of the more than 10,000 remarkable students of The Young Women’s Leadership Schools (TYWLS) in New York City and the Young Women’s Leadership Network (YWLN) affiliate schools nationwide.
Our students’ stories are always the highlight of the (Em)Power Breakfast and we were thrilled to hear from Barakat, Sumayya, and Sheline. We also loved seeing Maryam and Michelle interview our special guests.
Day of the Girl International Day of the Girl (IDG) is a time to celebrate the contributions and potential of young women around the world. In the spirit of the theme for IDG 2020 - My Voice, Our Equal Future we highlighted some of the stories of the inspiring young women in our network demanding and making change.
Advisory Committee The SL Network Advisory Committee, the first-ever of its kind at our organization, was created during the 2020-21 academic year with the purpose of deepening our connections with our principals, teachers, alumni, and especially our students at The Young Women's Leadership Schools (TYWLS). Learn more about the goals of the committee and meet the members here.
Counselor's Week Even though Counselor’s Week is held annually during the first week of February, we celebrate our directors of college counseling (DCCs) and college transition coaches (CTCs) all year long!
Our DCCs work tirelessly to ensure our students are seen, heard, and have the support they deserve while considering their options for the future. Check out the next page to hear from our students and what they will remember most about their DCC.
What I'll remember most about my DCC... “I will remember that Ms. Figz is one of those people who sees students as more than just a number. She sees them as leaders and future college students who are going to go above and beyond. Also how she treats everyone the same and believes in everyone.” Brandon, Class of 2021
“I will never forget how Jerome was always there to answer questions, provide support, and send all of us seniors any opportunities that could help us with our applications, scholarships, etc. He made everything seem easy and it gave me the confidence to push through this year.” Isabell, Class of 2021 “I will remember my college counselor being extremely helpful and making the college application process less stressful. Ms. Jones pointed me to all the right sources that allowed me to easily navigate through the college process. She introduced me to different scholarships and programs that have become very beneficial. Going to college, I could not have asked for better support and guidance.” Kelvin, Class of 2021
"From talking about my college aspirations sophomore year on the 2 train to [Ms. Jimenez] being the first person I called when I found out I got into my dream school, and us crying in pure enjoy[ment] together." Nayali, Class of 2021
Celebrating Women's Month Each March, we have the opportunity to honor and reflect on the many ways that past generations of women have paved the way for girls and young women to continue lifting each other up on the road to progress and change. This past Women's History Month, we took a look back at some of the incredible women who have been part of the SL Network story!
Volunteer Appreciation While we were unable to offer inperson volunteer events this past year, we continued our collaboration with corporate partners who shared their time and insights with our TYWLS students through a variety of virtual career awareness events.
Self-Care and Personal Brand with The Estée Lauder Companies
Cool Women, Hot Jobs with Sony
Building Your Social Media Presence with Geller & Co
Women In STEM with Deutsche Bank
Python Coding Workshop with Bloomberg
Alumni Engagement Highlights This year, we built and deepened connections with our alumni through a series of virtual events like the Future Success Symposium, The Young Professionals Career Expo, and The Summer Series featuring discussions around mental health and personal finances. We also launched a new Alumni Portal on our website to share resources for academic and professional success.
More to come... We are looking forward to new ways of staying connected with alumni! Stay tuned for news and updates including a new nearpeer mentoring program, Bridge Through College!
For more news & highlights, visit our Alumni Portal at www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/alumni-portal
CollegeBound Month
College access and success is the cornerstone of our mission and this past May, we launched our first CollegeBound Month, a month-long celebration of our CBI community. Watch this 45-second clip and see where some of our graduating seniors are heading next!
We also caught up with some of our alumni who have gone from COLLEGEBOUND to COLLEGE GRAD and asked them to share their advice with the Class of 2021 who will soon be heading into college life! Read more on our CollegeBound Month page.
CollegeBound Resources! We know not all students have a college counselor so in our committment to expanding college access, we created a suite of FREE resources to help ALL students navigate the college application process. Find the resources here.
TYWLS Astoria Graduation
77
Class of 2021
Graduates
90% Enrolling in
College
TYWLS Brooklyn Graduation
52
Class of 2021
Graduates
93%
Enrolling in
College
TYWLS Bronx Graduation
57
Class of 2021
Graduates
94%
Enrolling in
College
TYWLS East Harlem Graduation
79
Class of 2021
Graduates
99%
Enrolling in
College
TYWLS Queens Graduation
60
Class of 2021
Graduates
95%
Enrolling in
College
YWLN Highlights This year, our student leaders, staff, and teachers in our YWLN national affiliate and partner network continued to inspire us with their relentless pursuit of academic success, civic service, and social justice.
Class of 2021
2,067
Class of 2021
Graduates
$26M Total Financial Aid Received
12
College Applications per Student on Average
85% College Acceptance
Rate
Looking Ahead What a year we all had! Thank you to our entire network of students, alumni, supporters, team members, and friends for being with us through it all. The work continues - and we hope that you will stay connected with us as we celebrate our 25th anniversary in this upcoming academic year!
Don't miss out on our special 25th Anniversary content, events, and more ways to celebrate twenty five years of educational equality.
Stay connected with us!
www.studentleadershipnetwork.org @studentleadnet
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