Cheryl Grymes, a local Big Brothers Big Sisters officer and current Duval County School Board member, and mediator Bob Cole are actively engaged in the organization's projects.
Mediator
Robert A. "Bob" Cole, a longtime supporter of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Florida, recently attended a program recognizing partners in the organization's "Beyond School Walls" initiative, which connects mentors from local businesses with career academy students focused on the same targeted industry.
Beyond School Walls served 268 students involved in 13 partnerships at nine Jacksonville-area high schools over the last school year. The program is successfully achieving three goals, according to outcomes Big Brothers Big Sisters announced, based on fiscal year 2014-'15:
- 99 percent of participating students attended school and
- maintained or improved classroom behavior, and
- 97 percent of participants were promoted to the next grade.
As a member of the organization's board of directors, Bob, who is a shareholder with Upchurch Watson White & Max, encourages community leaders to take part in this and other mentoring opportunities. Over the course of the school year,
Big Brothers Big Sisters arranges for students to be transported to business sites to meet with mentors and learn about their business and industry.
Clay Yarborough, left, former President of the Jacksonville City Council, also was in attendance at the June 2, 2016, event.
