The 2015-’16 YES program year came to an end in style with 13 districts sending their best dressed graduates to St. Nicholas Hall in Minersville. This year a total of 290 students were awarded the YES certificate, with 60 of those students achieving perfect attendance. This year we welcomed Pittston Area to the YES family. They had a total enrollment of 42 students with 21 earning certificates. Here are some quick YES facts from this past year:
- A total of seventeen (17) schools offered the YES Program for the 2015-16 school year. They include Blue Mountain, Crestwood Area, Hazleton, Mahanoy Area, Minersville Area, North Schuylkill, Pine Grove Area, Pittston Area, Pottsville Area, Schuylkill Haven, Shenandoah Valley, Tamaqua Area, and Williams Valley, Wyoming Valley West high schools. The Schuylkill Intermediate Unit #29 also offered the program, as well as, Fort LeBoeuf and Central Tech in Erie County.
- 59 tours were offered with 5 new tour hosts opening their doors to YES students. Those new tour hosts were: Big Lots Distribution Center, Gatorade, Keystone Automotive, Kevins Worldwide, and the Schuylkill County Courthouse. They offered 8 tours this year. Currently, there are 50 businesses offering tours. To date, 370 tours have been coordinated since the program began in 2006 with just 1 school district.
- Mock interviews were conducted with YES program participants. Each student provided a cover letter and resume and the interview was customized to the student’s career interests. Seven (7) schools and 400 students participated.
- Penn State University will continue to offer a one-time scholarship to all YES Northeast graduates who attend the Hazleton and Schuylkill campuses. To date, PSU Schuylkill has awarded 79 scholarships and PSU Hazleton has awarded 17 scholarships, totaling $96,000 in scholarships since 2011. McCann School of Business and Technology has granted 5 YES graduates their Imagine America Scholarship, and 2 YES graduates their Tuition Scholarship (one for 50% and one for 75%), which applies to campuses in Allentown, Carlisle, Dickson City, Hazleton, Pottsville, Sunbury, and Wilkes-Barre.