ATLANTA (August 22, 2016) – Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP (SGR) is pleased to announce its partnership with Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School’s Corporate Work Study Program (CWSP) for the 2016-2017 school year. This is the second year SGR has partnered with the three-year-old program. The objective of the CWSP is to help students envision a future that includes a college degree and a successful professional career and to equip them with the knowledge and skills needed to realize that vision.
“SGR is proud of our continued partnership with Cristo Rey’s Corporate Work Study Program which enables the students to earn a quality education and gain meaningful work experience,” said Steve Forte, SGR’s managing partner. “Our lawyers and staff were honored to participate last year and look forward to another successful program.”
Through this innovative program students work five full days a month at top local businesses. As freshmen, student workers are introduced to the basic skills needed to participate in entry-level, corporate office jobs. Students then increase their understanding of general office culture, professional skills and daily responsibilities with their supervisor and colleagues as sophomore students. When students reach their junior and senior years, job placement begins to mirror a college-level internship. At SGR the students have exposure to attorneys and also the administrative side of a law firm including marketing, recruiting, accounting, information technology, records, and the library.
The earnings from this work pay for a large percentage of each student’s tuition costs, giving them access to a rigorous college preparatory education that otherwise would be too expensive. Cristo Rey students also gain valuable real-world job skills, contacts, and experience through this program, and go on to college in record numbers, in large part because of their early exposure to the working world.
About Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School
Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School is a Catholic learning community that educates young people of limited economic means to become men and women of faith, purpose, and service. Cristo Rey Atlanta is located at 680 W. Peachtree St. N.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30308, and is part of the Cristo Rey Network.
About the Cristo Rey Network
The Cristo Rey Network provides a quality, Catholic, college preparatory education to young people who live in urban communities with limited educational options. Our mission is clear – college success for Cristo Rey Network students. Member schools utilize a rigorous academic model, supported with effective instruction, to prepare students with a broad range of academic abilities for college. Cristo Rey Network schools employ an innovative Corporate Work Study Program that provides students with real world work experiences. Every student works five full days a month to fund the majority of his or her education, gain job experience, grow in self-confidence, and realize the relevance of his or her education. Students work at law firms, banks, hospitals, universities, and other professional Corporate Partners.
About Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP
SGR is a full service, international law firm that advises regional, national and global businesses on a wide range of legal matters. The firm’s 200 attorneys provide legal counsel in more than 45 specialized practice areas, including corporate transactions, litigation, intellectual property, aviation, banking, construction and employment law. Founded in 1893, SGR has offices in Atlanta, Austin, Jacksonville, New York, Washington, D.C. and Frankfurt, Germany.