Connecting Students to
Real-World Experience

Welcome to RiseUp Connect!

We are focused on empowering students through real-world learning experiences. RiseUp Connect partners with professionals and businesses to provide internships, job shadows, and career conversations that help students build skills and explore future career paths.

How You Can Get Involved:

One-Time Opportutnies

Be a Speaker: Host a Lunch & Learn session on career paths and industries.

Be a Panelist (Half Day): Provide feedback to students during exhibitions.

Host a Site Visit: Invite students to explore your workplace and ask questions.

Host a Job Shadow (Half Day): Show a student what a typical workday looks like.

Ongoing Opportunities

Career Conversation (15 min): Share insights via phone, video, or chat.

Internship (5-14 Weeks): Provide hands-on experience (8 hours per week, Wednesdays and Fridays).

BECOME A MENTOR

BE AN EXHIBITION PANELIST

Our Partners in Mentoring

Become a Mentor!

We are proud to collaborate with dedicated professionals and organizations that help shape the future for our students.Your expertise can make a lasting impact on students who need real-world exposure. By mentoring, you help students gain career insights, build confidence, and develop professional skills. We understand that hosting an intern is a commitment, and we are here to support you at every stage. Our team provides comprehensive guidance to ensure a smooth and rewarding experience for both mentors and students.

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FAQs

All FAQs

Mentors like you are the cornerstone of our LTI program, and we thank you for becoming a mentor! A key part of their school experience is to go on shadow days and secure non-paid internships at local organizations and businesses. This enables our students to get a hands-on experience in their field of interest. They learn from the experts, not just in a traditional classroom, out of a traditional textbook. In fact, we consider our internships to be classrooms, and our mentors to be teachers!
Being a mentor allows you to make a positive impact on the lives of young people. You will be a role model and educator to a student who is passionate about your field of work. Through genuine relationships, mentors teach work ethic and model what it means to be an adult member of our community.
Our mentors have expressed profound personal and professional fulfillment through their work with our interns. In addition, being a mentor gives you the benefit of an intern who will contribute real work, and who will bring new perspectives and solutions to your organization.
Each mentor should demonstrate a commitment to their intern’s personal growth and workplace learning. Here are some important responsibilities of being a mentor:
• Communicate regularly with the student and advisor.
• Develop a schedule and learning plan with the student.
• Share resources and knowledge with the student, and teach by example.
• Set high expectations for the student, and hold the student accountable.
• Collaborate with the student on project ideas that will be beneficial for your organization.
• Evaluate the student’s performance at the conclusion of each semester.
• Attend the student’s annual exhibition on campus.
Students attend internships on Wednesdays for a minimum of 5 hours each day. Schedules are decided by the mentor and the student, and dependent on the mentor’s needs and the student’s transportation. We ask that you host the intern for a minimum of one semester (generally between 10 and 18 weeks, depending on when the intern starts). At the end of the semester, the student, advisor, and mentor evaluate the internship together, and decide whether to conclude the experience or to continue. Some interns stay at their internship only for one semester, while others stay for a whole year or longer. Each is a case-by-case situation, but we do ask for an initial one-semester commitment.