Bennies and Johnnies In the Making

Class 3 Young Professional Yang Thao

A sense of community among friends, support from his professors and CSB/SJU staff, small class sizes and organizations and activities celebrating cultural diversity: these were the unique features that brought St. John’s University to the top of Yang Thao's college options. Yang is a class 3 Genesys Works alum who has found success at St. John's University.

Yang was inspired through his initial interactions at SJU and his experience at Genesys Works. He was eager to inspire the next class of GW interns to be open as they explore their college options.  He joined Lisa Lor, another GW alum, in welcoming the current class of GW students on last week’s CSB/SJU campus visit. Our current GW students were able to tour both St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict. Each tour guide provided our current GW students with knowledge on the rich history of both campuses and helped the interns see what makes CSB/SJU a great college option. 

Genesys Works young professionals at CSB/SJU

Both Yang and Lisa participated in the post-lunch panel created just for our Genesys Works interns so they could understand the struggles and triumphs that come with attending college at CSB/SJU. Yang so eloquently articulated his path to CSB/SJU. St. John's was on the bottom of the list and he had no aspiration of pursing education there. As he began to interact with his admissions counselor, Jillian Hiscock, and other warm, helpful staff, his list began to shift and St. John's was suddenly among his top choices. This was timely advice for each of our current interns as they are in the thick of the application process for college. Throughout the course of the time with these GW alumni, one thing was clear: the dedication and care that faculty and staff put forth has made their time at CSB/SJU productive, encouraging and enjoyable.

This success of our GW alumni and our campus visit would not have been possible without the dedicated support of Jillian Hiscock, the Assistant Director of Admissions, at CSB/SJU. A phenomenal advocate for students of color and first-generation college students, Jillian has been instrumental in providing students, like our Genesys Works young professionals, the opportunity to pursue higher education in a welcoming atmosphere of academic rigor, acceptance, and leadership. Not only does she provide assistance and encouragement as students are making decisions about college, but she goes beyond that to create a bond with each student to provide support throughout their college experience.