Students From Pasadena, Temple City, and Arcadia Receive Scholarships from New Nonprofit

INSIDE OUR SCHOOLS

(L-R) Ryan Martinez and Devan Kelly (Photo – Ainsley Martinez)

As the sun set behind the San Gabriel Mountains in Brookside Park, on Sept. 14, Project Talent Launch (PTL) awarded nearly $9000 in internship scholarships to students from Marshall Fundamental, Temple City, and Arcadia High School.

By News Desk

PTL is a student-run and student-founded nonprofit aiming to provide internships to all high school students. Internship sponsors, school administrators, and donors gathered to honor the PTL Scholars.

“Project Talent Launch is creating a game-changing movement. High school internship opportunities are limited to only a select few. PTL is on a mission to disrupt these rules. We are creating a world where all high school students have access to internships,” said Steven Li, the CEO of PTL who founded the nonprofit in September 2020.

Last summer, several local organizations and individuals sponsored high school internship opportunities:

• fintech company Cheese Financial,
• Pasadena Councilmember Felicia Williams,
• real estate companies A1 West, Century 21, and Clarkliving,
• AI company Virtualitics,
• Arroyos and Foothills Conservancy, and
• Corral Consulting.

Steven Li, CEO and founder of PTL (Photo – TopherXMedia)

“I think, more than anything, PTL has greatly aided me in deciding my career path of marketing by giving me this opportunity” remarked Bethany Chow, Senior at Arcadia High School and the Cheese Financial intern.  Chow is now also a part of the PTL team as Director of Marketing at Arcadia High School and is working on expanding PTL’s horizons.

“I thought I would sit back and just be a fly on the wall. I wasn’t. He actually involved me. He allowed me to take part in his actual sales and gain this experience… This is the most amazing experience I have ever had,” said Ryan Martinez, Senior at Marshall Fundamental and PTL Scholar at Clarkliving. Martinez has continued working with Clarkliving and is currently preparing to get his real estate license.

His mentor Steve Clark, founder and realtor at Clarkliving, said in a recorded video: “High school kids interning is something I have never heard before, and I’m 100% behind it… Ryan Martinez came into our lives, and it was the most positive, coolest experience.”

Other sponsors agreed. “Really appreciated this program because not only was there a collaboration between different cities and different schools and also different types of employers. That’s very difficult to get. I really appreciate the initiative and I am really happy for the students who learned very important job skills and got paid doing it,” commended Councilmember Felicia Williams. Business Development Manager Tracy Li of Cheese Financial added, “I think PTL…is doing a really important job by finding and giving these experiences to students.”

They have only just begun this very important work. PTL aims to provide internship opportunities to 100 high school students and partner with 50 internship sponsors by August 2022. Going forward, they plan to extend their reach to more schools in the San Gabriel Valley with the help of student and adult volunteers. In an effort to prepare students for the jobs of the future, PTL will also partner with businesses and community organizations across a wider range of industries to create internship opportunities.

Source: PTL