Say Yes Buffalo

This recognition is great, but what's even better is being part of a team where you are valued, supported, and never have to look far for help with anything. We even cracked into the USA Today rankings for small companies this time! To our entire team including past team members, thank you for making SYB a great place to work and grow. There's so much more great work ahead of us, our community demands no less! https://lnkd.in/gk8uU5XR

Say Yes Buffalo’s Employer Think Tank (ETT) recently presented its first event of 2025, a fishbowl style Panel Discussion and Happy Hour held at Seneca One. We had a beautiful turn-out of employers from both the private and non-profit sectors in attendance. The panel, moderated by Tiffany Swink, Say Yes Buffalo’s Business Partnerships Manager, included Jack Kavanaugh, Executive Director of GLYS; Anastasia McCarthy, Partner at Hurwitz Fine P.C.; Anna McCarthy, Senior Associate at Harter Secrest and Emery LLP; and Shaun Wilson, Workout Officer II at M&T Bank and Board President of Native American Community Services of Erie and Niagara Counties. The panel discussion and happy hour served to empower employers to strategically address and understand new executive orders of the president. The level-setting discussion united leaders in our community to continue carrying out our collective diversity, equity and inclusion work and further create thriving workplaces for all employees. The ETT series was launched in 2020 as a direct response to the calls for social justice in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder and requests from Say Yes Buffalo’s internship employers to have greater access to professional development that can help them move the needle. It has since grown to be a multi-organizational effort now funded by The Allstate Foundation. A special thank you to our partner organizations: Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology, Invest Buffalo Niagara, and Tech Buffalo for supporting the event. If you or your organization would like to be added to our distribution list to be kept informed of future ETT events and news, contact Amy Cappelli: [email protected]

Ten apprentices from the Modern Youth Apprenticeship program have been chosen to participate in a professional development series aimed at cultivating leadership, communication, and public speaking skills. Recently the apprentices spent their Saturday engaged in the Tackling Workplace Isms: A Guide for First Time Employees workshop created and led by Kendra Brim, CEO and Principal Consultant of K. Savannah Consulting. The workshop is designed to elevate youth voice in the workplace and empower our apprentices to recognize isms, such as racism, sexism, ageism, and ableism and empower them to advocate for themselves and others in the face of discrimination in the workplace. Thank you to Kendra Brim for delivering this insightful, powerful, and timely workshop! Kendra Brim, MBA #modernyouthapprenticeship #earnandlearn

What a joy it was last Friday to read to the Say Yes Buffalo Little Scholars. Thank you so much for the invitation, I truly enjoyed these brilliant babies.

One more announcement from us this week on recent internal promotions. We're thrilled to announce that Collin Gehl has been promoted to Chief Human Resources Officer! We've grown so much as an agency since Collin became our first Human Resources hire and the fact that we've not only maintained a positive work culture but have enhanced it says so much about Collin's skill and leadership. Collin's brings our team energy, a deeply felt dedication to the mission of Say Yes Buffalo, and new hires who are bought in on day one and hit the ground running. Kudos to you, Collin Gehl, MOL (He/Him/His)! https://lnkd.in/gfYWZaSj

Announcing another promotion on our school-based services side: Sylvia Lloyd is now Senior Director of School-based Services overseeing our preventive services, health home, and mental health programs. Sylvia has served area youth, families, and front-line workers for almost two decades. Her commitment to the work and to her colleagues is unwavering and we're lucky to have her leadership! Congratulations Sylvia Lloyd!

??Please join us congratulating Lee Byrd on her promotion to Senior Staff as Manager of School-based Preventive services! A longtime member of the Say Yes Buffalo family, Lee brings a wealth of knowledge, dedication, experience, and heart to the hard work of supporting Buffalo youth and families.

The Modern Youth Apprenticeship program provides apprentices with on- the- job learning in high demand industries performing meaningful work with the goal of leading to long-term career pathways and family sustaining wages. But the path is not always linear and our wonderful employer supervisors understand the importance of having touchstones to consider the apprentice’s growth, goals, understanding of their industry and of themselves. Sometimes it means reassessing the needs and interests of the apprentice to help prepare them for the next steps. This was the case with Antonio Hatch, an Emergency Roadside Assistance Technician Apprentice at AAA Western and Central New York of Western and Central New York. Antonio is in his second year of his apprenticeship. His supervisor, Kevin Fortner, Fleet Associate Manager, recently shared that as they worked through competency reviews (which occur every 6 months), Antonio was uncertain about which goals to set and how to advocate for himself in planning for his future. “We have been going through the competency review process with our apprentice. From an outcome standpoint we haven’t explained in depth what that looks like yet. We are getting a pulse check on where he is today- what he has accomplished and what goals he would like to set. We are considering the whole person and what works best for him. He has expressed exploring other avenues outside of our work, such as trade schools. So, we are trying to support him, helping to build him up, raising his confidence to explore career pathway opportunities, and providing insight and direction in the pursuit of those avenues. Young professionals don’t always know exactly where they are going. And part of our job as supervisors is to help them see what is available to them and explore answers to their questions.” #modernyouthapprenticeship #workforcedevelopmentsolutions

We are excited to share that Teah Stevens, a Culinarian Youth Apprentice in the Modern Youth Apprenticeship program will be assisting Chef Stephen Rich to represent Rich Products Corporation's Innovation Center during the West Side Chops cooking contest on April 30th. Six local chefs will compete against each other in a Chopped-style cooking contest using ingredients commonly found at the food pantry, Provisions 139. Guests will be invited to try a sample plate from each chef, then vote on who will take home the title of People’s Choice Chef. A panel of judges will also assess the chefs’ offerings and crown a Judges’ Choice Chef. Click the following link for more information and to purchase tickets to the event: https://lnkd.in/gyCvUwz6 We are sending best wishes for success to Teah and Chef Rich! #westsidechops #modernyouthapprenticeship #culinaryapprenticeship

We had a great employer turnout last Friday for the Workforce Development Team’s Inclusive and Youth Centered Hiring and Onboarding Training. The training helps to prepare employers for the interview and hiring process for the Modern Youth Apprenticeship program. It is also a safe space for intentional conversations around understanding bias and developing best practices when working with young professionals. We are excited to see which graduating seniors will be officially joining Cohort 4. We are grateful to our Cohort 4 employer partners for their commitment and collaboration in creating thriving workplaces for young talent. A special thank you to our Cohort 3 employer partner Evans Bank for graciously providing a warm and welcoming meeting space. Visit https://lnkd.in/gaTJ6xkK to learn more about the Modern Youth Apprenticeship Program. If you are an employer looking to grow your workforce, consider partnering with the Modern Youth Apprenticeship program. Reach out to Emily Melendez at [email protected] for more information. #modernyouthapprenticeship