On Friday, Sept. 25, the Chicago Fire and Southern New Hampshire University teamed up over Google Meet for a safe and socially distanced iteration of their annual job shadow experience with the Rompe Las Barreras (Break Through The Barriers) program.
Students and administrators from Gage Park’s Solorio Academy spent their afternoon with representatives from the Fire’s front office and first team via video chat to learn about how different parts of the organization operate on a day-to-day basis.
After an introductory session with Club President Nelson RodrÃguez and Chief Operating Officer John Urban, a guest panel of representatives from the Club’s football operations, communications, and gameday operations staffs spoke with the students. They discussed things like their respective career backgrounds, projects they're currently working on, breaking into the sports industry, and how COVID-19 has impacted their daily responsibilities.
The students were then treated to a virtual meet-and-greet with Fire midfielder Micheal Azira, who -- outside of his endeavors on the field -- is a long-time advocate for education through his Azira Micheal Youth Foundation and is currently working towards his masters degree in sports management through SNHU.
The purpose of the Rompe Las Barreras campaign is designed for Hispanic students to gain valuable real-world work experience, insights and exposure helping to motivate and encourage advanced career development beyond post-graduation. Friday’s experience marked the Fire's third year of involvement with the program.
All of the students additionally received a t-shirt, backpack and Grubhub gift card courtesy of SNHU for participating.
