Why I Give: Andrew Goldberg

Andrew Goldberg (pictured left) and his family gave a significant donation to allow Girls with Grit to engage consultants at Schultz & Williams for a strategic planning project. Their donation will also make it possible for us to respond to awardee priorities identified during our summer focus groups. Their gift will allow us to increase our graduation gift from $100 to $500, which will enable graduates to pay down student debt or purchase job necessities. We want to thank the Goldberg family for their investment in future dreams.

Q. Why do you donate?

A. Jill Melmed-Buzzeo was one of my mother's closest friends and, to me, she was "Aunt Jill." She was the original girl with grit. After a divorce, Jill became a big success in the then male-dominated field of wealth management. I'm also involved in markets and Jill was always a sounding board for me during my career when I needed some outside perspective and I always appreciated her support.

Also, my mother volunteered over the course of her life, especially at National Council of Jewish Women, where she was a former Northeast President and a National Board member. She passed away about a year before Jill. I know she would love the idea of Girls with Grit and the good it's doing to help young women reach their potential. So I donate money in her honor as well as Jill's.

Q. What about our mission or program speaks to you?

A. I think the years of mentoring and sense of community are the most important aspects. Many awards are purely financial but Girls with Grit offers so much more. Surrounding outstanding young girls with this unique support should make a real difference in their lives as they mature.

Q. How do you define grit?

A. To me grit is continuing to grind even when you get knocked down. Life has ups and downs and how one responds when things go awry defines true character.

Invest in a girl with grit and let us know why you give!

Say Hello To Girls With Grit

Since 2015, the Jill Melmed-Buzzeo Award has provided 19 Philadelphia “girls with grit” with scholarship funds, mentorship and an intergenerational community of supporters as they graduate from high school. Today we announce we’re officially changing our name from Jill Melmed-Buzzeo Award to Girls with Grit.

“We started off as honoring an individual, and now the person for whom we were named is taking the proper place in the hierarchy,” said Girls with Grit founder and board president Fran Melmed. “The girls are taking the lead.”

Named for Melmed’s mother after her death from lung cancer, the organization’s mission honors Jill Melmed-Buzzeo’s values: to equip ambitious, resilient female-identified students from Philadelphia with the tools and support to advance their professional dreams. In addition to $2,000 for educational expenses, a $300 travel stipend and regular care and toiletry packages, recipients are matched with a mentor who helps with the kinds of personal, academic and professional challenges she may encounter.

Another key component of the award is financial and professional preparation. Awardees receive career coaching and the opportunity to pursue roles and projects to develop their leadership skills. A financial empowerment program helps awardees think through paying for college, managing savings and spending, and job search skills. They also take part in solo and group sessions with a college financial fit coach and a resume and interview coach, among others.

“They taught me one can never have too many mentors, too big of a network, or too much support,” said 2016 recipient Nina McPhaul.

As the organization has grown, award recipients—who are expected to participate in group meetings, social events and other cohort activities—shared feedback with the board: the “girls with grit” tagline encapsulated how they saw themselves and their relationship with the program.

That tagline includes the intentional use of “girls” to mean any of Philadelphia’s female-identifying citizens and “grit” as the special quality that pushes awardees to hustle for themselves and their community despite their struggles.

“Girls with grit face obstacles but they push forward,” Melmed said.

The Jill Melmed-Buzzeo Award will continue to anchor the organization, which will announce five new girls with grit later this spring.

You can support Girls with Grit with a tax-deductible contribution. To become a mentor or to join our community, read more about our volunteer opportunities.

Q&A: Georjelis Rujano, 2019

Georjelis Rujano's senior year has been anything but ordinary.

This 2019 awardee knew the first day of her final year at Science Leadership Academy - Center City (SLA) would be in a new building. What she couldn't have foreseen was a delayed opening because of construction issues, an unexpected fall removal due to construction-related asbestos issues, and school shuttering again—for the rest of the year—a mere month after she and her classmates finally took occupancy in their new home.

Because of COVID-19, Georjelis will miss many of the anticipated milestones of senior year: celebrating college acceptances, attending prom, presenting her capstone project, graduating en masse, and saying good-bye to her school family and friends.

Georjelis doesn't dwell on the downside. It's not her M.O. She's always there with a positive message and a reminder that good things are ahead. We were excited to be the ones assuming this role when we learned her first-choice college, Franklin & Marshall College, accepted her into their Class of 2024. Since hugs, high fives and fist bumps are off limits right now, we had to settle for a Zoom Q&A session.

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Justina and Georjelis review financial aid offers

Q. Georjelis, congrats! How did you decide where to apply?

A. My mentor Justina and I talked about the characteristics that were important to me. I wanted a small to medium class where I could really know my teacher. I also thought about the distance from my family. I knew I didn’t want to be far. F&M is about one hour away from Philadelphia.

Q. You attended F&M's Collegiate Leadership Summit in the fall. What interested you about this summit?

A. The summit offers high school seniors two nights on campus. I attended with other students from around the U.S. We were there to learn about the college and to see the campus and the academic, social, and self aspects of student life. I really like that the campus is small. And the campus is close to a farmers market. It's cool to have a view of a lifestyle different from one's own. The summit helped me pick this college. I met amazing alums, counselors, and underclassmen who made me feel welcome and at home. After all these experiences, I knew I wanted to go to F&M.

Q. How did JMB Award help you in your college application and decision-making process?

A. I first heard of F&M last summer when Fran Melmed, JMB Award's founder, mentioned she went there. I searched Franklin & Marshall to learn more about the school and I stumbled on the application for the Leadership Summit. I asked Fran to nominate me for the summit.

Our JMB Award sessions on college 101 and financial aid also help. This is where we learn how to review financial aid award letters, write an appeal for more aid, and learn about other things to be aware of now so the future is not as troublesome financially. But what I really find helpful through everything is the community of powerful and striving women. It’s very inspiring and motivating to be in this community, and to have a community to depend on during ups and downs.

Q. What are your summer plans?

A. I'm going to search for scholarships to decrease the gap between what aid I got and what I'll need for college for the year. I'm looking for a job and volunteer work with different organizations. I’ll also be focusing on my nonprofit to distribute more nonperishable foods and medical supplies to the people in Venezuela! (Note: Georjelis founded the nonprofit La Luz De Aurora in honor of her grandmother. She was invited to pitch her nonprofit at a youth expo and the Braskem Capstone Acelerator, a partnership between Braskem and SLA. Braskem elected to fund Georjelis' continued work with La Luz De Aurora.)

JMB Award Receives Saturday Club Grant

JMB Award has been named a Saturday Club 2020 grant recipient.

We’re honored to be recognized by a club founded in 1886 by a group of “radical” women who defied expectations and decided to “Dare to be Wise.” The newly formed club campaigned for child labor laws and the protection of women from assault, and their focus on women and children continues today.

Saturday Club recognized the value of our toiletry kits, which deliver everything from toothbrushes to tampons. Their grant will help us deliver three toiletry kits per awardee this year.

The other Saturday Club 2020 recipients were Advocates for Homeless & Those in Need, the Education Law Center - PA, Interfaith Hospitality Network on the Main Line, and St. Augustine Academy.

Welcome New Advisory Board Members

Take a moment to get to know our newest advisory board members.

Allison Blanda

Allison is the director of enterprise relationships for WordPress/Automattic. Born in Toronto, she began her career as a journalist with Bloomberg before marrying a diehard Philly sports fan and making this city her home. She joins JMB Award to head up our individual fundraising efforts.

What clicks with you about JMB Award’s mission?
I attended college at Mizzou, a big state school, and I was shaken by how many of my peers didn't make it through freshman year because they lacked a support system. The university had tons of resources, but outside support beginning in late high school really factored in to people's success. Since then I've focused my volunteering on college readiness!

Tell us about a female-identified mentor who made a difference in your life.
A former colleague name Ellen helped me realize you have to ruthlessly prioritize the things you care about, and being overwhelmed is something you can control. She does everything well. She's a rockstar at her job, a mom of two successful daughters, an active volunteer and a respected member of Temple. Ellen is now a friend who I can ask advice of when I'm reprioritizing.

Marquita Eshun

Marquita grew up in the Logan section of Philadelphia before studying business, accounting, and finance at West Chester University and Rosemont College. That mix provides valuable experience as a small business owner. It’s also critical for her role heading our finance committee.

What clicks with you about JMB Award’s mission?
I see myself in many of our awardees. I loved school, I had goals, and I enjoyed accomplishing them and making my parents proud. Unfortunately, I hid this true nature from my peers. Providing a safe, encouraging space to thrive and dream is something I will be passionate about for the rest of my life.

What do you love about Philly?
I love the history, art, and diversity of Philadelphia. I also love the opportunity. I started my career in finance and have been able to flourish in other markets, including small-business ownership. We have a great job market, and affordable rent and home prices. I'm also in love with the walkability of the city and the fact that each neighborhood has its own identity and personality. Last, the food of course!

Margaux LaPointe

Margaux grew up in Lebanon, PA and attended Villanova University before heading west to UCLA Anderson School of Management for graduate school. She returned to the area and is a senior associate marketing manager with Campbell Soup Company. She’ll bring her communications expertise to us as the head of our communications/social media committee.

What clicks with you about JMB Award's mission?
It is important to have diverse voices at the table. By helping to equip girls with grit, we can enable women who spark change.

Tell us about a female-identified mentor who made a difference in your life.
My mom has been my biggest inspiration. I grew up in a neighborhood where most moms stayed at home, but my mom was a senior director at a Fortune 500 company. She taught me to believe in myself – “see it, make it happen” – and was also honest about the trade-offs she had to make. Because of her, I have been able to build both a career and a family that I love. (Margaux’s family grew recently. Her husband and she welcomed a baby girl in April—our first “baby with grit.”)

Genesis Soto

Genesis is one of our two youth advisory board members. She grew up in North Philadelphia and graduated from Murrell Dobbins CTE High School before joining the Class of 2023 at La Salle. She’ll work with Angie Wenger to advance our programming goals.

What motivates you?
My future self and my struggles while growing up in a low-income single parent household.

Tell us about a female-identified mentor who's made a difference in your life.
My JMB Award mentor has made a difference in my life. Having Kim to talk to during my first year at La Salle helped me through my hard times. Also, having Fran and the other awardees to talk to about college and how to handle certain situations has helped me feel more comfortable about self-advocating and addressing problems I'm having with others in a respectful and professional way.

What's the one place you tell all visitors to Philly to go?
I tell all visitors to take a stroll in Center City and to be sure to go by Love Park.

Angela Wenger

Angie is the EVP & COO at Center for Aquatic Sciences, housed in the Camden Adventure Aquarium. She’s overseen their learning experiences growth in size and scale and will bring that expertise with her as the head of our program committee.

Where did you grow up?
So many places. I’m an Army brat. I lived at least 7 places before the age of 12, one of them overseas.

What do you love about Philly?
Culture, arts, history, architecture, community, and most important, food!

What clicks with you about JMB Award's mission?
Supporting and mentoring young women as they pursue and achieve their life goals.

We Love You, Philly!

It’s nearly three weeks since our planned 5th Birthday Bash. We still hope to host this celebration and fundraiser, but we’re taking our time deciding our next turn since so much still remains unknown.

What we do know is people and businesses are reeling. We want to call out our 5th Birthday Bash sponsors and donors. These people and businesses came to our aid when we needed it. We hope to return the favor now that they do too.

Below you’ll find a map of all our sponsors and donors. Beneath the map is a list we compiled of how to support or enjoy many of them during these wild and unnerving days. We hope you’ll share this information with your community so we can all come together and come out stronger.

And of course, please consider supporting our awardees. Not being able to host our 5th Birthday Bash left us with a budget hole we could use your help filling.

Love you, Philly!

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Sponsors

Bok: Shop small and local with these Bok businesses offering virtual services and online shopping.

Bookworms Early Learning Center: Put the kiddos in front of a live storytelling session with one of their preschool teachers.

Flying Fish Brewing Co: Pick up curbside beer.

Le Caveau: Support their GoFundMe for their 24 team members.

Mariposa Food Co-op: Shop at this West Philly grocery and help them continue to donate food to community organizations and food banks and take care of their staff.

Mighty Bread: Buy bread or items from their expanded line of products, including eggs and milk and fresh produce.

Philadelphia Distilling: Buy from their “no-touch” bottle shop, which also keeps their hourly staff employed. Win-win.

Auction Donors

Cadence Restaurant: Order takeout from a daily changing menu. Tips are being given to furloughed staff.

Càphê Roasters: Buy coffee and check out their joint venture with Triple Bottom Brewing below.

K’Far Cafe: Support the hourly team members at all Cook N Solo restaurants by buying a gift card for K’Far or any restaurant / casual spot from this group.

KG Strong: Join KG Strong for a virtual fitness class on Instagram.

Moore Brothers Wine Company: Pick up wine with their curbside service in NJ.

Opera Philadelphia: Experience #operaonthecouch with the Opera’s video clips from their archives.

Primal Supply Meats: Pick up meat, fish, prepared meals, and more. They’ve expanded their partnerships and services to support you and more Philly food providers.

The Franklin Institute: Occupy the kids (and yourself) with their Instagram-delivered science sessions.

Triple Bottom Brewing: Buy beer or create a customized care package, a Joy Box.

Vetri Cucina: Buy wine or food (from their sister restaurant, Fiorella’s) and help #SavePhillyEats.

You can also get gift cards from these businesses that closed during this crisis: Fringe Salon, Rescue Spa, Vault + Vine. And get a membership with Philly Foodworks once they’ve opened to new members!

See you out there, Philly! We love you.

JMB Award Launches Emergency Fund

Because the unexpected happens, we’re introducing The JMB Award Emergency Fund.

Our emergency fund will be a supplemental resource to help awardees address unanticipated financial needs, especially emergencies that could prevent them from continuing along their educational or professional path.

The JMB Award Emergency Fund is available to support awardees with:

• Legal expenses: Immigration and legal support

• Medical expenses: Medical/mental health/vision/dental expenses not covered by insurance

• Technical expenses: Hardware (purchase of new laptop and emergency repairs, excluding those from negligence) and unanticipated course-related software

• Basic needs: Food, emergency child care

The amount of emergency funds we award will be based on money available at that time and the number of applications we receive and approve. Emergency funds do not need to be repaid.

We couldn’t have imagined when we introduced this fund in February how vital a resource it would be! The fund has already provided an awardee with the money needed for important immigration filings. It’s also available for awardees facing unexpected costs related to COVID-19.

This fund joins our financial award, travel stipend, and toiletry kits to provide direct financial support to our awardees.

We’re grateful to the donors who seeded this fund: Emily Bryan and Tom Rutkoski. To direct your donation to the fund, note “Emergency Fund” in either your online donation message or in the memo section of your check.

The Girls with Grit Guide to College

If anyone knows how challenging and layered the transition from high school to college is, it’s our awardees. That’s why two of them, Angie Ortiz and Vicktoria Phanthavong, decided to put together a guide to college for current and future awardees. The result is JMB Award’s The Girls with Grit Guide to College.

“Like many first-generation college students, I did not have family to turn to with questions regarding college,” Vicktoria explained. “I wanted to create this guide to share with other awardees what I wish I knew throughout my college experience, giving college advice as an older sister.”

The guide covers the areas Angie and Vicktoria felt were most critical for a first version: academics, dorm life, money, health, relationships and work. They worked with Elena Shomos, a mentor, and Fran Melmed, JMB Award’s founder and acting executive director, to flesh out what information should be covered in each of these areas and then what resources—JMB Award-specific, on-campus, and self-advocacy—to highlight.

Shared with our awardees in January, we recognize this resource could be useful to other first-generation students (as well as any college-going student), so we’re making it public.

“We hope the Girls with Grit Guide to College serves as a blueprint for girls entering college/university,” said Angie. “We hope the advice in this guide will make the path to higher education—and through it— easier to navigate.”

Angie and Vick are the first “girls with grit” to add to this guide. They hope they’re not the last. That’s why they refer to this guide as version 1.0. As Angie said, “We hope this first version inspires other awardees to contribute to the guide and add their input. We hope the Girls with Grit Guide continues to grow!”

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Angie Ortiz and Vicktoria Phanthavong brainstorm guide topics.

Our Progress, Thanks to You

Thank you for partnering with us. Whether you volunteer, donate, promote our work, or cheer from the sidelines (or your social media account!), it all matters and it all adds up.

What I Learned from My Summer Internship

Over the summer I interned with HIAS Pennsylvania. I was fortunate to find out about this internship through my JMB Award network. Rona Buchalter, the Director of Refugee Programming and Planning at HIAS Pennsylvania, is on the advisory board with me. So, when HIAS Pennsylvania was looking for help, my name came up as someone to interview. I interviewed with the Director of Development, Daniella Nahmias Scruggs, and got the job!

My job was to help the Daniella build our presence on social media. I was in charge of developing content for our Instagram and other social media accounts. I helped build awareness for events like Philadelphia World Refugee Day, a big summer event that celebrates the culture of our local immigrants. I was able to attend press events, too, like a recent one where Mayor Jim Kenney and Councilwoman Helen Gym spoke out in support of admitting more refugees and immigrants to the U.S.

I learned a lot over the summer! I learned what it takes to manage a project. You have to really explain the roles and expectations so everyone understands when to have something done by. There are a lot of behind-the-scene things I didn’t know took so much time to plan and execute!

I also learned what a content calendar was. When I was having some questions about my internship, I reached out to Fran (JMB Award’s founder and also a communication consultant), who is a communication consultant. She helped me think about how I could build a content calendar for the social media accounts and what could go in that calendar, too.

My internship experience also made me more aware of the news and what’s going on. I read lots of news articles to keep up with our immigration and asylum policies. Something I found interesting was how these events were reported. Often times, TV news networks simply gave brief details about a new policy whereas articles were in-depth. I was able to see how HIAS Pennsylvania reacts to these events to bring awareness to the challenges asylum seekers and immigrants face.

Being able to take charge of my internship helped me build up my confidence. The JMB Award community was always there to give me advice on how to make the most of this experience.

Please go learn about HIAS Pennsylvania and the refugee situation.

Angie Ortiz
Angie Ortiz is a 2017 awardee and advisory board member.

We’re Yarn Bombers!

Following our collaboration with Lace in the Moon and Girls Rock Philly (GRP) at GRP’s Summer Rock Camp, the JMB Award community reunited with our partners to install a yarn bomb of the JMB Award logo.

Awardees and mentors helped put up the yarn bomb, made by Lace in the Moon, before adding our ribbon testimony of what gives us grit. Our ribbons joined the GRP campers’ and will soon be joined by those of passers-by who add their own.

The cactus is waiting for you to come by. Visit it at 1428 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia, PA.

Photos: Linette Kielinski

JMB Award Shows Us Female CEOs!

It’s inspirational to see people with nothing build their empire and make their mark on the world. JMB gives us the opportunity to do this, to meet women CEOs."

Our 3rd annual summer retreat invited awardees and mentors to attend sessions on personal care, professional development, and money smarts. We practiced advocating for ourselves with Dr. Brandi Baldwin, CEO of Millenial Ventures Holding and one of Philadelphia’s 40 under 40. We learned from Cooking Alchemy’s Elizabette Andrade how to feed our mind and our body while sparing our wallet. And Wells Fargo’s Kyia Coleman helped us identify our money personality and strategies to work with it. All of these women shared their expertise and passion. They also shared their path and starting place, an inspiration for students starting from that same place.

In many ways, the retreat felt familiar. We ate and we bonded, and coffee and laughter fueled us through the day. But this year ushered in something new. We celebrated our first graduate!

Amy Chen, our first awardee, graduated in May from Juniata College with a BS in political science. She’s heading to basic training with the Army in August. Before she goes, we sent her off—girls-with-grit style. We let her know how much we love her and how proud we are! Refatun Momo, ’16 awardee and our next graduate, led the celebration with a speech about Amy’s impact on our community.

Take a look through our photo album for more from the day.

It's not bragging. It's facts. - Dr. Brandi Baldwin

Food and mood with Elizabette of Cooking Alchemy

Learning how to handle our wants vs needs with Kyia Coleman

Amy, you’re not a ray of sunshine. You’re a freaking ball of fire. - Refatun Momo

Fran Melmed, Amy’s mentor and our founder, gives Amy her graduation cactus pin

Now that's a cake!

2019 JMB Award Summer Retreat

Photos: Linette Kielinski

JMB Award Goes to Camp

Today we had the opportunity to relive our camper days. Three awardees and our founder joined street artist Lace in the Moon in hosting a workshop for Girls Rock Philly (GRP) youth campers at GRP’s Summer Rock Camp.

Using yarn bombs as our foundation, we spoke with these 9- to 12-year-old campers about what keeps us going during the rougher times. We also created some art!

Lace in the Moon led us in the creation of crocheted portrait frames for the campers’ music showcase. The finishing touch came from campers’ ribbons testifying to what gives them grit.

Girls Rock Philly is a youth-centered organization that provides music mentoring and an intergenerational community to girls, women, trans, and gender-nonconforming people. Lace in the Moon is a recognized street artist in Philadelphia, and, thanks to her recent Queer Eye scavenger hunt, well beyond.

Congratulations, 2019 Awardees!

Please join us in congratulating and welcoming our five 2019 awardees:

Genesis Soto, a graduate of Murrell Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School, enters La Salle University Honors Program, Class of ’23. She plans a future with the Philadelphia School District in their budgeting or accounting departments.

Georjelis Rujano is a rising senior at Science Leadership Academy–Center City and the founder of a nonprofit, La Luz de Aurora, to aid Venezuela.

Jewels Lofland, a graduate of Mastery Charter–Pickett, joins the Class of ’23 at West Chester University. She’s drawn to social sciences, women’s studies, and the potential of social work.

Kipaji Miles graduated from Bodine High School for International Affairs and enters Neumann University, Class of ’23, where she’ll focus on her chosen career path of nursing.

Nhi Vo is a rising senior at Community Academy of Philadelphia Charter School. She’s drawn to the study of biology and medicine.

These awardees and their mentors launched into their year together at our JMB Award orientation where they learned more about JMB Award’s services, supports, and community.

L to R: Nhi, Kipaji, Jewels, Genesis, and Georjelis aced Acting 101 at our JMB Award orientation

Photo: Ellery Schiller

Year One at Penn State

I graduated from Mastery Charter School - Pickett Campus in 2018. That’s the same year I became a JMB Award recipient.

I chose Penn State not only because of its great reputation, but also because I felt like I was part of a loving, supportive family the first time I stepped foot on campus. Penn State also offered me a GREAT financial aid package, so of course I couldn’t resist. I‘m thinking about majoring in Human Development and Family Studies with a minor in Child Maltreatment.

The main thing I like about Penn State is its spirit. Whether it’s a pep rally, laser tag, or even a game night, Penn State always has something for me to take my mind off things.

“My mentor Elena played a huge role in my first year.”

Academically, my first year was AWESOME!! I made Dean's List both semesters and ended the year with a 3.8 GPA. I had prepared myself to fail. However, I didn’t have to struggle, and if I felt like I was on the verge of not understanding something, I used professors' office hours. The class I liked best was algebra, which came as a surprise because I hate math! I was lucky to get a professor who kept me engaged and genuinely wanted me to understand the material.

I didn’t really have a huge social life, by choice. I joined two organizations: the Caribbean Student Association and a women's empowerment group. Joining these groups allowed me to focus on my academics and still be part of some type of outside life. I met a few friends, and our bond has been unbreakable ever since.

Penn State is roughly four hours away from Philadelphia. My travel stipend from JMB Award helped tremendously with traveling back and forth between home and school. Without it, I would have been left with nothing at times. My mentor Elena also played a huge part in my first year. She ALWAYS made sure that things were going fine and I was being treated the way I am supposed to. The first few months at PSU, I had roommate issues, and Elena helped me solve them.

The JMB Award didn’t just help me financially, but physically, mentally, and emotionally as well. I am so grateful to be a part of something so astounding.

Davina Loibman
Davina Loibman is a 2019 awardee. She writes about her journey from Mastery Charter to Penn State Main.

The Hard Work of Selecting

I was nominated for the JMB Award by my high school counselor. The first thing I did after learning about the nomination was look at the award’s website. When I read all the benefits they offered—the financial award, having a mentor, the retreat, and the community aspect—I became even more eager to apply. I was selected as an honorable mention in 2017, which meant I became a member of JMB Award’s supportive community.

Having been an awardee, I was very curious as to how the awardees were selected. This year I found out. I was part of the selection committee and I saw all the hard work that goes into considering which applicants would fit best in the JMB Award community.

We look for someone who shows resilience and grit. When someone is able to rise above a challenge, you see their dedication, hard work, and motivation to continue moving forward. I saw myself reflected in all of them because I could see the hard work they were putting in to receive a college education.

Next we look for someone who will benefit from our community. As a member of the JMB Award community, it’s important to be involved and to be able to communicate with the other members of our community. Awardees are assigned a mentor, so we’re looking for applicants who are open to having this type of experience.

We also look for openness. That’s really the most important thing we look for. We look for someone who is open to learning and being supported by a powerful group of women who want to see each other succeed. These are the applicants we invite to interview as finalists and ultimately select as awardees.

Angie Ortiz
Angie Ortiz is a 2017 awardee. She writes about her experience on the 2019 selection committee.

An Opportunity I'd Never Pass Up

JMB Award requires the most recent award winners serve on the selection committee that chooses the coming year’s award winners. That was not on my mind in 2017 when I checked email while walking to work and discovered I was selected as an awardee. I was so appreciative of receiving the award that the process behind how I was selected never entered my mind.

Then, in 2018, it was my turn to serve on the selection committee. While reading 30 applications, along with their stories covering the challenges that defined each applicant, I remembered being in these students’ shoes a year earlier.

I became more appreciative of being selected after helping with the selection process. I realized the time and energy it took to read the applications, participate in the selection discussion, and make the hard decisions of which finalists to interview from the many amazing applications we received.

Now, I’m a youth board member. I’ve been looking forward all year to being a part of the selection committee once again. It’s such an important moment. The JMB Award is so different from many other awards. We not only provide financial assistance to awardees, but also a community awardees can continue to interact with and be a part of for as long as they choose. Reading these various applicants’ stories allows me to advocate for those I believe will be a great addition. I hope to select awardees who will see the people and things we have to offer and make the most of them.

We depend on various voices to ensure we choose the best fit. This is where we former awardees come in—we can provide an awardee/youth point of view. It gives me joy to use my past experience to help the 2018 award winners, who are now serving for the first time, understand what to expect and what their role is. I’m happy to help, too, as it was a very daunting task my first time.

Being part of the selection process is an opportunity I’d never pass up. Deciding who receives the award and becomes part of our community greatly matters, because we are more than an award. We are family.

Vicktoria Phanthavong
Vicktoria Phanthavong is a 2017 awardee. She writes about her experience on the 2019 selection committee.

A Look at Our Selection Process

Selection processes are often a mystery. How are awardees selected? Who does the selecting? How many are chosen? We don't want our process to be that way. So, allow us to walk you through the people, the timing, the steps, and the tools we use to determine finalists and then awardees.

But first, we want to back up and talk about how students hear about our award. They’re nominated. Principals, college counselors, debate coaches, teachers—they all nominate students. So do staff from youth programs like Upward Bound, Fab Philly, and Philadelphia Young Playwrights. Once students are nominated, we invite them to apply.

This year, 45 students were nominated and 25 decided to apply. That’s OK with us. We’re looking for students with ambition who are ready to leap on opportunities. By applying, students are already demonstrating those characteristics.

Once we have both nomination and application in hand, we move into our selection period.

Introducing...the Selection Committee

The selection committee is made up of our advisory board and two of our awardees from the previous cycle. We invite awardees to participate because they bring a valuable "insider" view, having gone through the process less than one year earlier. This year we’ll have even more awardees casting their vote, thanks to our two new youth advisory board members.

Applicant Packet Prepared and Reviewed

Each member of our selection committee receives a packet containing every application and nomination, along with any additional supporting materials students submitted.

Before we pass this packet onto our selection committee, we strip out the names of the students and the nominators to remove bias. We also require any member of the selection committee to recuse themselves if they have an affiliation with a school or program and may know the student.

Each member of the committee reviews all this information and then scores each application according to our rubric. We ask committee members to consider whether the student demonstrates the characteristics we seek, has a vision for her next steps after graduating high school, and has some sense of how we can support that vision.

Picking the Finalists, then the Awardees

Next, the committee comes together to narrow the pool to finalists. Our finalist pool is typically limited to eight students. At our meeting, we average the committee’s scores to see if it naturally determines our finalist pool. We also debate and discuss applications to assure we hear all voices and opinions.

We invite finalists to interview with selection committee members, and these same committee members make awardee recommendations to the full committee. The full committee meets once more to review and approve all awardee recommendations.

Awardees Announced!

We keep all applicants updated about their status throughout the process. The happiest emails we send, of course, are to the four awardees. These emails go out in late May. Then, we’re ready to introduce our four 2019 awardees to the public by June. Stay tuned!

5 Questions for Rosina and Angie

For our celebrations recognizing our fifth award cycle, we invited several people to answer five questions about their JMB Award experience. Rosina and Angie answered their five questions by phone and text, the standard way they’ve built much of their two-year relationship.

1. Angie, what did you hope to get from having a JMB Award mentor?
I was fortunate to have a mentor throughout high school, and I remember all the great things that I learned from her. I wanted the same experience with JMB Award, and I've gotten it. Rosina has been a great mentor. I'm the first in my family to go to college in the United States. During my first year at Fairfield University, I texted Rosina about my doubts and stress. She always listened to me and, most importantly, she gave me honest advice.

She's given me the confidence to advocate for myself on campus. With her, I’ve learned the importance of having someone you can talk with and trust. I always look forward to talking to Rosina because I know she gives me the advice she probably wanted when she was in college.

2. Rosina, you’re a founding member of JMB Award’s advisory board. Why did you wish to be a mentor, too?
It was meeting Angie that made me realize I wanted to be a mentor. From the beginning of my work with the award, I wanted to be as helpful to our community as possible. But meeting Angie during the 2017 award cycle made me realize I wanted to be HER mentor. I knew from the moment we met that she would be a wonderful addition to our community!

3. How did you two grow together as mentor and mentee?
We've known each other for two years now, but growing together takes time. You just have to start talking and slowly build trust. In the beginning the award gave us a structure for the conversations, but as we went along we developed our own style. I remember being so happy when Angie started reaching out to talk on her own, not just as part of our regularly scheduled meetings. As our trust grew, we began to talk about other things besides academic life. We continue to learn more about each other and this only strengthens our mentoring relationship.

4. What’s been your favorite shared experience as part of the JMB Award community?
Every summer JMB Award holds a daylong retreat for students and mentors. The retreat covers a variety of topics important to students and invites speakers to talk or work with us. Last summer Yasmine Mustafa came to speak with us about her experience as an immigrant.

Yasmine now owns her own business, ROAR for Good. But she came to talk with us about her undocumented status and what that meant when she was a college student— and how she worked hard to graduate. She shared how meaningful it was for her when she finally because a U.S. citizen.

It was an eye-opening talk for everyone and our favorite shared experience (so far!).

5. What five adjectives would you use to describe JMB Award?
This year JMB Award opened its fifth award cycle! We'll soon be doing the hard work of narrowing our pool to a group of finalists and then our four awardees. When we welcome these new awardees in June, here are the five adjectives we hope they'll also use when they talk about our community:

• Caring

• Supportive

• Empowering

• Creative

• Dedicated

5 Questions for Cameron Voss

For our celebrations recognizing our fifth award cycle, we invited several people to answer five questions about their JMB Award experience. Cameron Voss is both a founding member of the advisory board and a mentor.

1. Why did you decide to be a part of the advisory board?
Almost five years ago, Fran Melmed, our founder, asked if I would like to be part of a conversation about starting an award for “girls with grit.” I said I would like to be involved because of our long friendship, and because I wanted to help honor her mother, Jill Melmed-Buzzeo. I didn’t know exactly what we would be doing, but I was intrigued with the potential of the award.

Within a couple months we were ready to present our first award! I remember how excited the board members were when we arrived at Science Leadership Academy to honor Amy Chen, our first awardee, and welcome her into the brand-new JMB Award community. That day I felt proud to call myself a founding board member.

2. What has been your favorite experience?
I have two! Some of the advisory board members also volunteer as mentors. One of my favorite experiences has been getting to know my mentee, Momo. I met her right before she graduated from high school, and now she is a junior at Saint Joseph’s University where she’s an Interdisciplinary Health Services major. Being a mentor enhances the way I approach my role as a board member.

Another amazing part of serving on the board is reading the annual nominations and student applications. Every board member reads all of the nominees’ stories about navigating challenging situations and planning for the future. Although we do not get to meet all of the nominees in person, their words inform they way we design our mentoring program.

3. What important lessons has the board learned since the award was founded?
Every year the board thinks about ways to improve the award, reflecting on what went well and what could be enhanced. For example, this year we improved the questions on the student application, held group orientations for mentors and new awardees, and adjusted the method we use to check in monthly with mentors.

In addition to creating systems to help us function better, we remain open to new and creative ideas. When we can, we act on suggestions provided by our awardees. The toiletry kits we gave to awardees in December, the travel stipend that helps fund college visits and trips home over break, and our adorable cactus sweatshirts, all of these ideas came from students or were inspired by their needs.

4. How have you seen the award grow?
Every fall we send care packages to our awardees. These care packages include items that represent our support for all of our students at the midpoint of their fall semester. When you’re away from home for the first time or you have a cold and are facing a week of midterm exams, receiving homemade cookies, a box of tea, fuzzy socks, and a gift card for a coffee shop can really help! What's fun is that we ask donors who give exclusively in support of the care packages what item they wish included. That way our care packages are curated by all of us, mentors and donors.

This past year we used the care packages as a way to touch base with our mentors, too. As mentors, we had a fun evening together, getting to know each other better, sharing ideas about mentoring, and remembering our own college days.

5. What are your dreams for the award?
I initially thought the main component of our support would be the financial award and the mentoring would be a nice add-on. Now I know the mentoring is more important than the financial award, especially if the mentor and mentee both commit to it. As more women enter the JMB Award community, we’re focusing on bringing the mentors, mentees, and board members together in various ways to build community. We celebrate five years in March 2021. I predict in the next five we’ll undertake various activities to deepen and expand our work. And five years from now, I wonder if we’ll look back at where we are today and think of our group as small.