0:02 The purpose of the program is to partner business executives with students so the
0:08 students can get a sense of what the real world is like. It gives them
0:12 somebody that they can talk to about career paths networking how to put a
0:17 resume together. I really found that having David help me get connected to
0:25 larger a larger network than when I'm currently in. Having that connection
0:29 that's in the private sector is invaluable in expanding that network.
0:34 John has done an excellent job of getting me in the real world
0:37 understanding the real world experience to further my knowledge and my
0:42 understanding of Finance. When I first heard the executive mentor program I
0:46 wasn't really sure what to expect out of it but on the first day I met Christina
0:51 I knew she was going to be the perfect role model and mentor for me. The
0:56 benefits to the mentors are that they get to give back. All of us have had
1:01 somebody in our careers that have helped us along the way and so this gives them
1:05 an opportunity to help another student on their career path. I think it's been
1:10 great to be able to share some of the knowledge that I've developed throughout
1:14 my career. To be able to accelerate the careers of some of the mentees. I've
1:19 developed some great friendships I think it's really cool that once it's you know
1:22 it's not just a year-long program for me I really stay in touch with my mentees
1:26 throughout the years. I would highly recommend other people to get involved
1:29 in the executive mentoring program it's very rewarding not only for the mentee
1:32 but for the mentor. It really keeps you connected with the world of academia. It
1:37 helps you understand the job market it helps you give back in a way that you
1:40 may not otherwise be able to. We are really fortunate because we have a
1:44 wealth of resources and professionals within Pensacola who have
1:49 just shared collective wisdom. Every year we do outcome research and we are
1:58 measuring how far the students have come from the beginning of the year to the
2:02 end of the year and we know that students when they're graduating out of
2:06 our program are getting jobs in their field at a much higher rate than the
2:11 typical college graduate and so we can't take all the credit for that because
2:15 they're great students but I do think that the executive mentor program is
2:19 playing a role in making very substantial difference in their lives.
2:23 Karen and I typically meet monthly we'd usually meet for lunch and just have a
2:26 really open conversation. We talk about everything from what's going on at
2:30 school to what's going on in her career search. He's really gotten to know me
2:34 well during that time and so when I brought up job opportunities he's been
2:37 able to say okay I see you're excited about that but not for the right reasons
2:41 or that doesn't sound like you Karen and so that's been invaluable as sort of a
2:46 sounding board with the search in simply having that person who really knows you
2:51 inside and out. You know he's a very competitive person he really wants to be
2:55 the best version of himself and so what I like about that is that that's the way
2:58 I live my life is that we can always improve we can always get better and
3:02 then the goal is to be the best version of who you are and Darius has that. I had
3:07 to let John know like I'm not easily hurt. I want the constructive criticism
3:11 because only gonna make me better. We spent a lot of time just talking about
3:15 what's going on with respect to her planning for her future, the job that she
3:20 currently had as well as next steps with respect to career planning. It was really
3:26 exciting and really great to know that a woman
3:29 in the professional community was able to kind of navigate and guide me through
3:34 those situations. Man you are a star like I said. So we're really proud of the executive
3:43 mentor program and the successes that we've seen with our students and the
3:47 engagement that we've seen with the business community because at the end of
3:51 the day all of our goals are to help the students be workforce ready and to be
3:56 successful in their careers and lives