On Sunday, April 21, MCN held its second MY NYC Bridge session at the Al-Noor School. This session provided further opportunity for students to get to know their potential mentors before they are paired into mentorship teams in May. Additionally, this month included a skill-building workshop and group discussion to directly engage students in planning their financial futures.

As part of this skill building, mentors led focus groups exploring students’ career goals and life aspirations, as well as the steps they plan to need to reach them. MCN invited Shuan Ahmad and Vivian Lau, two members of “How Money Works,” an organization that provides high school students with knowledge on financial literacy, to provide a brief overview on personal finance and a hands-on budgeting workshop.

At the end of the session, it was apparent that the students had reached a comfort level with the mentors and had increased their determination to reach their goals. We’re very excited about the progress of the MY NYC program and thankful for the support from community members in helping pave the way for a brighter future for these students.