The Americas

Developing the full potential of youth

“How many people can say they make a real difference in their lunch hour?” asks Mary Ellen Guest, Executive Director of Working in the Schools (WITS).

More than 250 UBS employee volunteers do just that by taking part in a mentoring program, aptly named the ‘Power Lunch’, that pairs professionals with elementary school children to practice reading together one lunchtime a week.

‘Power Lunch’ is now an award-winning, public private partnership that serves as a national model of corporate volunteering. Employees in Chicago, Los Angeles, Weehawken, New York City, San Francisco, and Stamford take part.

Research shows that a ‘Power Lunch’ can have very real benefits: “Students who participate in this program take their books home more frequently and read more often with their parents,” says Mary Ellen. “They seem to be more motivated and choose to visit the school library more times than their peers.”

There has also been a marked improvement in the quality of the students' reading: before starting the program, only 38% read at or above grade level, compared to 66% after participating.

Mary Ellen believes the project would never have started in Chicago without the involvement of UBS. “We believe the firm was the catalyst for the success of ‘Power Lunch’ here,” she says. “The enthusiasm and dedication of UBS staff have helped it grow from 25 volunteers to 1,700 in just four years.”

UBS pledged to continue its partnership with WITS on the ‘Power Lunch’ project for some time to come, in order to continue to help this charity achieve excellent results.

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