Partnering with Friendship Christian Academy to Prepare Students for Life After High School

Partnering with Friendship Christian Academy to Prepare Students for Life After High School

Think Big forms affiliate partnerships with other non-profits that offer locations enabling us to serve more kids. One such partner is Tampa-based Friendship Christian Academy, a private K-12 school that has experienced the positive impact of Think Big’s volunteers, partner companies and programming since joining forces in February 2023.

Earning Buy-in and Excitement from the Kids

Think Big was introduced to Friendship Christian after learning from the school administration team that their high school students were expressing a lack of interest in careers and lack of direction after graduation. We started with Career Exploration programming, breaking the middle and high school students into different groups and facilitating monthly Career Showcases with a variety of partner companies.

While the initial launch was slow to gather buy-in and excitement from the students, two students took advantage of Think Big’s internship opportunities to secure paid internships over the summer with AVI-SPL and Accenture. When word spread of their experience, high school students started taking note of our program and even began calling our staff to look for job opportunities.

When school started in Fall 2023, Think Big began with our career interest survey and mentorship program. Slowly, but consistently, we gained more interest along the way, with more students requesting mentors and even chatting in the hallways about what they may do after graduation.

Enter Job Readiness & Placement

When Think Big’s application window for scholarships opened in Fall 2023, we worked in partnership with the school principal and Think Big mentors to ensure as many seniors as possible completed their applications. We interviewed four of their 12 seniors, and each one was awarded a scholarship! Three of them started at Hillsborough Community College to continue their post-high school education, and one student is working with JDP Electric, one of our founding partners, in an apprenticeship program. (See Jeff and Benaiah’s story in our Impact Report.)

When summer 2024 approached, interest in Think Big’s programs had taken on life. Seven students applied for and were accepted into our internship program, taking roles at Tampa General Hospital, Accenture, and NextPath Career Partners.

With programming for the 2024-25 academic year in full swing, Think Big has become a fixture at Friendship Christian, where we continue to serve middle and high school students across all three program pillars.

We cannot wait to see where these experiences take the students from Friendship Christian, and we are grateful for the partnership with their whole team, especially their principal, Mr. Maurice Wood:

“When I think about the impact that the Think Big program has had on our school, the immediate word that comes to mind is rejuvenation. Students now have attainable goals, teachers have the students’ attention, and that is having an impact on the community!”