A New Twist on Apprenticeships to Connect Talent and Opportunity in Buffalo
For Buffalo Public School students looking to “earn while they learn” after high school and for employers looking to develop young talent, CareerWise Greater Buffalo is a game changer.
“CareerWise Greater Buffalo connects young talent to careers with salaries that will allow them to thrive. And we also want to help employers recruit and retain talent,” explained Stephanie Peete, Senior Director of Post-Secondary Pathways at Say Yes Buffalo, the organization that leads CareerWise Greater Buffalo.
Part of a national apprenticeship model, CareerWise Greater Buffalo was born out of collaboration between two of the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable’s initiatives. On the student side, it is a strategy of its Youth Employment Coalition (YEC), developed to create a coordinated approach for youth ages 16–24 to access career pathways leading to family-sustaining jobs. Stephanie also played a key role in establishing the YEC. On the employer side, it supports the Business Leaders Task Force’s efforts to strengthen inclusive workplace practices.
“This is a great example of the Roundtable’s coalitions working together in coordinated ways to advance racial equity and achieve an expanded, inclusive economy,” said Felicia Beard, AVP, Racial Equity Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships at the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo.
CareerWise Greater Buffalo, launched in 2022, matches interested students with employers for a two- or three-year apprenticeship in which youth are immersed in an organization. Simultaneously, students attend partner colleges and often, the learning goes hand in hand with the work. Upon program completion, apprentices then enter the workforce, either with their CareerWise employer or elsewhere, bringing with them work experience and a broad skill set in their chosen field of interest.
Stephanie sees CareerWise as a natural fit for Say Yes Buffalo’s cradle-to-career services, with wraparound supports that evolve to meet the needs of each student. Needs range from from transportation and housing to childcare or helping a student learn to drive.
“Getting a job and establishing a career are hard. There’s just a lot to learn and we supplement what the colleges and the employers offer,” Stephanie said.
To date, more than 75 local youth have participated in CareerWise through 21 employer partners — with 20 of them completing the program as part of the first two cohorts — working in fields such as business operations, IT and financial services.
For students like Farwizah Muhammad Farook, the program has been invaluable. She is a graduate of McKinley High School and currently a CareerWise apprentice at the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, one of 10 local employers for the 2025 cohort, while also attending Villa Maria College. Farwizah shared, “If you value education while also gaining work experience, then CareerWise might be the right fit for you. It’s really a head start in life.”
Her supervisor, Alethea Odudu, Efficiency Manager at the Community Foundation, agrees. “CareerWise apprentices get to go to school and apply it in real time. That’s a rare gift. And the employer gets to work with these young people and have first-hand perspective of them making overall impact. It’s a win-win.”
To learn more, visit https://www.careerwiseusa.org/location/buffalo-ny/