Schools

Foster City Teen Selected as Bank of America Leader

San Mateo High School student Samuel "Sam" Hayat has been chosen as one of a select few of community-minded high school students from around the nation for Bank of America's Student Leader program.

The Bank of America Charitable Foundation has announced that five Bay Area high school students, including one from Foster City, have been selected to take part in the 2013 Student Leaders program.

The program awards 225 community-minded high school juniors and seniors from around the country with paid eight-week summer internships at local nonprofit organizations.

Samuel “Sam” Hayat, a Foster City resident and rising senior at San Mateo High School, is interning at Citizen Schools in Redwood City.

Find out what's happening in Foster Citywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Despite gains in the overall job market, teens still have the highest unemployment rate: one out of every seven young people is not in school or working, according a statement from the Bank of America.

The Bank of America Student Leaders program is part of the company’s ongoing commitment to provide individuals with access and exposure to critical resources that will bolster their work and life skills while also benefiting the community, bank officials said.

Find out what's happening in Foster Citywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“Teens are once again facing a tough time finding summer jobs,” Raquel Gonzales, Silicon Valley Market President of Bank of America, said in the statement. “Our Student Leaders program provides them the opportunity to earn and learn, while increasing the capacity of nonprofits to serve critical community needs.”

In addition to the paid internships, the students will attend a weeklong Bank of America Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C., in July.

Summit activities include a service learning project and a series of interactive workshops, including Capitol Hill briefings and sessions on financial education and leadership development skills.

The students gain a deeper understanding of how service creates positive change and how corporate, nonprofit and government collaboration revitalize communities. 

Participating local students are:

  • Joanne Tran, a Piedmont resident, and recent graduate of Piedmont Hills High School, is interning at Silicon Valley Education Foundation
  • Khoa Nguyen, a San Jose resident, and recent graduate of Bellarmine College Preparatory, is interning at Silicon Valley Education Foundation
  • Matvari Maharaj, a Redwood City resident, and rising senior at Sequoia High School, is interning at Citizen Schools (Redwood City)
  • Samuel “Sam” Hayat, a San Mateo resident, and rising senior at San Mateo High School, is interning at Citizen Schools (Redwood City)
  • Trinh Au, a San Jose resident, and recent graduate of Yerba Buena High School, is interning at Silicon Valley Education Foundation


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here