Greenburgh School District Launches Local Architect, Contractor and Engineer Mentor Program

The following notice concerning the Greenburgh School District’s new ACE mentoring program is from Town Supervisor Paul Feiner:

The Greenburgh school district is planning to participate in a very exciting initiative – working with the ACE mentoring program. Students who attend the school district will have the opportunity to work with architects and engineers. Dr. Tahira Chase, Interim Superintendent of Schools, has advised me that the school district is looking for architects and engineers to mentor students. If you work for a firm that might be willing to assist students by mentoring them – please advise. We want our children to have a great future and this program provides students with a head start. The town will also be working to promote this very worthwhile cause. Please e mail me if you’re interested in helping out. My e mail is pfeiner@greenburghny.com

The ACE Mentor Program is a not-for-profit organization that helps prepare high school students for careers in design and construction through mentoring by industry professionals.

The program was founded in New York City in 1995 by leading architects, contractors, engineers and owners. It has grown to more than 8,000 students and 2,500 mentors in 200 cities and 40 states. Since its inception, the program has served over 5,000 students in New York and 65,000 students nationwide. Over 900 students have registered for the 2013-2014 program season in New York alone. 72% of ACE students are minorities and 49% are female.

ACE New York has awarded $1,887,000 in scholarships to 915 program graduates.

Program Structure:

• High school students, particularly from under-represented populations, are introduced to careers in the design/construction field.
• Teams are made up of 15-30 students and 5-7 mentors from different industry disciplines.
• A Team Leader sets the project schedule, prepares meeting agendas and may host or arrange the meeting location.
• At least 15 biweekly meetings are held from 4 to 6pm during the school year.
• Mentors present industry overviews, assign activities from ACE’s Best Practices Manual and guide the students through the development of a design project.
• At the end of the season, students present their project just as a real design team would present to a potential client.
• Scholarships are awarded to top students at a luncheon in May.

To sign up to mentor, apply on our website at www.acementorny.org and send your availability from 4 to 6PM on Mondays through Thursdays to Ed Jerman at edjerman@optonline.net