Career Path of an Upward Bound Project Director at an Education Non-Profit
Lidia's career path began with "my first real experience working with youth" as a mentor intern during college, followed by involvement in a student-run project at UCLA. This early experience with youth development and education, coupled with volunteer research and relevant coursework, directly led to Lidia's first post-graduate position working with youth, establishing a consistent focus on this area throughout their career trajectory.
Youth Development, Nonprofit, Education, Mentorship, Community Engagement
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Lidia Alfaro Chavez
Project Director III, Upward Bound
Education Non-Profit
UCLA, 2014
Pepperdine University, MA Social Entrepreneurship & Change, 2017
Anthropology, Sociology
Nonprofit, Foundations & Grantmaking
Operations and Project Management
Scholarship Recipient, Pell Grant Recipient, Greek Life Member, First Generation College Student
Video Highlights
1. Early experience mentoring youth through a college institute and non-profit internship.
2. Gaining further experience through a student-run project at UCLA.
3. Combining summer internships, student projects, volunteer research, and relevant coursework to build expertise in youth development and college readiness.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Did you have any internships or jobs before your current role?
In college, I had my first real experience working with youth the summer after my freshman year. I worked as a mentor intern for a college institute with a nonprofit that had helped me get to college. That was my very first experience as a young adult working with youth from communities very similar to the one I had come from.
From there, I gained more experience working with a small project out of UCLA that was student-run. After college, I took my first position, also working with youth.
Throughout college, my experience with youth development and education was really with my summer internships and the work I did with my small student-led project. During my undergraduate career, I also worked with a few different projects doing volunteer research and taking classes relevant to civic engagement. This involved being involved in the community and better understanding the needs I saw in terms of youth development and college readiness, and how to address them.