One day per week, these Cristo Rey Jesuit High School Milwaukee students don’t show up to school. Instead, they’re answering phones, performing market research, assembling computer hardware, and gaining other hands-on work experience through the Corporate Work Study Program. As a founding partner of the program in our city, we’ve watched as the power of real-world experience has transformed raw, nervous kids into confident, capable young adults. This powerful program is designed to lift up the students who need it the most.
“Having ManpowerGroup as a founding partner has been amazing. The name recognition and reputation of the company immediately lent credibility to our program, and this partnership encourages other companies to participate.” — Joe Mazza, Director of the Cristo Rey Jesuit Milwaukee Corporate Work Study Program
Helping students find their future
It all starts at our Global Headquarters, right here in Milwaukee. Every incoming Cristo Rey freshman class visits us for our Summer Bridge Program – a weeklong computer and soft skills seminar that helps students get comfortable with the world of work. Then, it’s time for Draft Day, perhaps the most electrifying event of the year, to bring the community together to share their excitement. Students find out where they’ll be working. Companies reveal the new members of their team. When it’s all over, each student leaves with a meaningful job that has the potential to catapult their future.
Ready to get down to business
Every year, at every grade level, every Cristo Rey student participates in the program as part of a four-person team. That includes about 12,000 students in 22 states working at nearly 4,500 companies. Each team is responsible for one full-time job, with each student covering five days per month over the course of the school year. They go to work at companies doing real-world jobs like executive assistants, research associates, and technical support. ManpowerGroup currently employs eight students, who are responsible for a full-time job in Marketing Communications and a full-time job in Information Technology.
- 1200+ hourswork experience for each student
Doing good where it’s needed most
For the last four years, in offices all over Milwaukee, students are building the foundations of their future. The Cristo Rey network serves communities and families with limited economic resources, for whom the Corporate Work Study Program represents a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The money they earn is put towards high school tuition, so each student can start contributing to their family right away. All without neglecting a single moment of their schoolwork.
- HALF of each year’s tuitionis covered by student wages
Invested in the workforce of the future
We believe that meaningful, sustainable employment has the power to change the world. That the young women and men of our hometown deserve all the opportunity that they can get. And that as each student employee becomes more experienced, educated, and productive, so does our future Milwaukee workforce. We are humbled to support each of our student employees as they grow into ambitious young professionals. We can’t wait to see where they go from here.
- 100%Graduation rate
- 100%Students accepted into college
“When I started here, I was a kid who wasn't very vocal, somewhat inexperienced, but with a lot of energy to work. I really think that ManpowerGroup has made a huge impact in my life. My coworkers have helped me become a better me.” — Corporate Work Study Program Participant Jesus Ramirez
