Who are CWS Supervisors, Partners, and Mentors?

When an organization agrees to hire CRJS students, the commitment extends throughout the organization and is shared by many dedicated people. The Corporate Work Study team has specific language to help identify these advocates.  

Generally, when referring to a corporate partner, we mean the entire organization or company. A champion is the person who made our partnership happen within an organization – this could be a C-suite level leader or someone who helped share our mission with their organization. Supervisors are the organization’s employees who work directly with our students every day. Supervisors oversee student tasks, fill out timecards, and provide professional feedback. Mentors are employees who may not work with our students as frequently but often identify with other aspects of a student’s identity, like ethnicity, culture, age generation, etc. Mentors provide support outside of workplace responsibilities and help students feel comfortable within an organization’s culture. 

On June 5, the CWS team was pleased to host close to 40 supervisors and mentors from 18 different corporate partners for the introductory Supervisor Training, including Alaska Airlines, Expeditors, Baker Tilly, PACCAR, and many more.

This event marks the beginning of a monumental year for the Cristo Rey Jesuit Seattle CWS program.

The 2-hour long session gave an overview of expectations, logistics, schedules, responsibilities, and more. It also provided an opportunity for supervisors and mentors to ask specific questions, which they were eager to do.  “What should a student workspace include?” and “Can we onboard our team of four students at the same time?” were among many great questions. Katie Seltzer and Zen Brown on the CWS team were thrilled to see so many supervisors invested in creating a welcoming environment and intentional structure for CRJS students. 

In addition, supervisors were given time to meet each other and reflect on the impact of the opportunity they're providing CRJS students. Part of this time included reflecting on their own mentors and the support they’ve received throughout their careers. It was very moving to hear so many leaders share their gratitude for mentors, knowing they will soon have a similar impact on CRJS students. 

The Corporate Work Study program is committed to providing students with real-world job training and experience.

Part of developing a successful program is training supervisors to be prepared for our students. In addition, the other important step in building a strong CWS program is preparing students for their work placements during the Montserrat Summer Bridge Program in August. 

As a culmination of this hard work and dedication leading up to their work placement, students and partners will come together for our inaugural CWS Draft Day. Celebrating Draft Day is a tradition among Cristo Rey schools and marks the moment students match with their work-study placements and meet their corporate partners for the year. Save the date for this exciting event on August 28 from 1:00pm-3:00pm at Seattle University as we launch our founding year!

Learn more and register for Draft Day