Cristo Rey Interns: Where Are They Now?
Written by Brenden Nickels, Senior Office Assistant
Cristo Rey Jesuit High School was formed in Chicago in 1996 and has grown to have 38 schools nationwide, including Minneapolis in 2007. One of their core tenants of learning is the Corporate Study Work Program, where students intern at participating companies. In fact, this is Cristo Rey’s mission:
“The Cristo Rey Network of high schools delivers a career focused, college preparatory education in the Catholic tradition for students with limited economic resources, uniquely integrating rigorous academic curricula with four years of professional work experience and support to and through college. We partner with educators, businesses and communities to enable students to fulfill their aspirations for a lifetime of success.”
What you probably don’t know is that Cristo Rey is the only school in Minnesota that has this type of program. Each student works one day a week and one Friday a month through their internship with one of Cristo Rey’s local partners, and this is how they earn nearly half of their tuition. Cristo Rey students have a longer school day and year while taking college and career preparatory courses, all to make sure that they are ready to enter the workforce or begin their secondary education. Also, the school’s College Success Program is tailored to the needs of the first-generation students by offering college counseling and support while continuing on through college graduation.
Cristo Rey Interns’ Experiences at KA
Since 2014, during the school year, Kraus-Anderson has employed four Cristo Rey students as interns throughout the week. The students assist different departments to gain work experience for the future. These are some highlights of a few of the students and their success.
“It helps the company because we have extra individuals here to assist with projects as they come up. This is especially useful during times of the year when our teams are busy with end of year projects, and such.” said Kraus-Anderson Minneapolis Office Manager Lori Charlesworth. “It helps the interns by allowing them to experience what it might be like to work in a certain field, develop good habits and networking skills, and learn to be accountable for their work. But on an even deeper level, it gives our employees an opportunity to mentor our interns as they rotate through our departments. In doing so, it allows our employees to practice or develop their own communication, training, and supervision skills they can use as they move up within our company.”
Miguel Jara Llapa was the first senior to graduate while interning at Kraus-Anderson. Jara Llapa went to NDSU, and is currently working as a project engineer for Boston Scientific. “Kraus-Anderson helped me get an understanding of an office environment,” Jara Llapa said. “Meeting with different people and having the opportunity to visit one of the job sites Kraus-Anderson was building for 3M gave me an understanding of the amount of work, resources, and planning takes to get a project completed.”
Alex Jara Quito was the first Cristo Rey student to intern at KA for his whole four-year term. He is currently about to head into his senior year at St. Cloud State. Jara Quito said about his time at KA, “Kraus-Anderson has given me more experience than most other high schools. Many who come out of high school don’t exactly know what the corporate work world looks like and what the daily work looks like. It educated me on how much paperwork needs to be done with certain jobs and how something may look simple, but could actually be very complicated. And to just to be ready for different challenges that may come my way.”
Yanelis Camacho Rosado interned at KA during her full Cristo Rey career, as well as a few summers. She went on to attend St. Olaf, where she has since acquired more work study experience in the Admissions and Human Resources offices. Rosado said that the communications skills she has learned at KA have helped her out, especially when giving campus tours to potential new students. “A lot of what I learned at KA was communication skills. Every year when it was time to set up goals, communications skills were my number one priority because it is something that I use every day and continue to work on.” Rosado said. “My time at Kraus-Anderson has definitely shaped the person that I am today. It has given me useful skills and great mentors from whom I have gotten great advice. I am very glad to have been part of the team of Cristo Rey students to have interned at KA.”
Kristin Pacheco was interning at KA for two years until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Now, she has attained her highest goal, a full scholarship to the University of St. Thomas. Because she was interested in architecture and accounting, Pacheco was connected with mentors in those departments. She also gained experience in other areas of the company as the interns rotated through each of KA’s departments to see how they contributed to the operation of the company. “Working as a high school intern at Kraus-Anderson is a one-of-a-kind experience that I was lucky to be a part of.” Pacheco said. “Given the opportunity to not only learn about core structures in a company but also develop meaningful connections was really a gift that allowed me a jumpstart in the professional world.”
Continuing the Cristo Rey Tradition
Charlesworth said that it is KA’s hope to start working again with the school this fall. She also added, “these students are exceptionally bright. We help them build a strong work foundation, gain confidence, and overcome shyness so they can talk with their co-workers. They also learn and practice life-long skills they will need when they enter college or begin their first jobs. It’s my goal for them all to finish out their internship here with better presentation skills than I have. I can’t think of a better way to invest in the diverse talent within our community.”
This is so great! Congrats to all on their successes!