Happy 2017, Summer Search family!
As we close the books on 2016, we are taking a look back at our most popular, inspiring, and memorable blog stories from the past year.
Let’s get right to it…
John Legend: Fighting for Justice With Love
Award-winning recording artist and dedicated philanthropist John Legend made a legendary appearance at our New York City Gala. His incredible endorsement inspired the Summer Search community and caused a viral explosion on social media.
Speaking of endorsements, watch former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan endorse Summer Search during PBS’s American Graduate Day.
Press Play Series
Back in March, we introduced you to six high school seniors in a series of podcast-style conversations called Press Play, where they spoke with their mentors and reflected on their college-bound journeys. To complete the series, we followed up with this same group of Summer Searchers in June to find out where they decided to go to college!
Alexis: Game Changer
We introduced you to Bay Area Summer Searcher Alexis Flores, a Latino male from a rural community in Napa, California, who strives to be a game changer by giving back and being a leader for his family and community.
Oh, and because Summer Search was a recipient of a $500,000 grant from the Super Bowl 50 Fund, Alexis’s story was featured in the 50 Fund’s Game Changers video!
FLOTUS & Summer Search
We were incredibly fortunate to join First Lady Michelle Obama not once, but twice, as she celebrated with college-bound students (and plenty of celebrities) and promoted the benefits of higher education.
Beating the Odds Summit at the White House »
State Street: Investing in our Leaders
State Street’s investment in Summer Search Boston is creating leaders, and valuable employees, like Ron, Rocio, Sharhea and Ronald.
5 First-Gen Faces
In the heart of graduation season, we were proud to present this #Snapshot of a group of five New York City Summer Searchers — Angie, Justin, Katherine, Regina, and Shelly — who all became the first in their families to graduate from college!
By the way, with 91% of Summer Searchers being first-gen, we celebrate first-gen success all year long.
When in Doubt, Reach Out
We kicked off National Mentoring Month 2016 by taking a closer look into the unofficial rallying cry for Summer Search students, “when in doubt, reach out.”
See more of our National Mentoring Month stories from 2016.
Shared Values: The Makeup of a Great Partnership with The Estée Lauder Companies
NYC college student Nathaly Abreu is just one of the many Summer Searchers benefitting from our partnership with The Estée Lauder Companies.
2016 Summer Travelers
2016 was our biggest summer yet, as we sent almost 1,000 students on life-changing experiences all over the world.
Meet the newest Summer Searchers who joined us in 2016, and see the story behind one of our favorite summer photos!
Committing to Action at CGI America
We made an official Commitment to Action to critical mentoring at CGI America in June… and got a photo opp with President Bill Clinton!
See more of our critical mentoring conversations.
Thank you for letting us share our stories with you in 2016. We look forward to continuing to spread the Summer Search word in 2017!