Sometimes it just takes a little inspiration to lead young people into careers that could change their lives. That’s why Dropbox, one of the leading collaboration platforms, offers opportunities for its employees to influence students from local schools through their community engagement program.

Dropbox is partnering with Skyline High in Oakland, California through the Oakland Public Education Fund. This non-profit is apart of a larger initiative called Circle the Schools, where the goal is to align companies, like Dropbox, with local Bay Area public schools to provide additional support to teachers and students. Volunteers also participate in various events like Computer Science Week to inspire students and show them that there are many different career paths available in the field of technology.

The company expanded its efforts to include Skyline High and Bret Harte Elementary school in the Bay Area in 2018 after successfully partnering with Mission High School in San Francisco since 2014.

In a Medium article published by Dropbox, Mariama Eghan, a leader in the employee resource group, BlackDropboxers, shared that she knows her and her colleagues are “in a privileged place” so the commitments to help schools are a way to “step outside of the bubble and give back.”

“We can share what we know and let other people know they can do it too,” said Eghan. “We can even just do it for ourselves! Because it feels good to help, to give back, to take that day and spend it with someone else instead of hugging your laptop all day.”

The partnership with Skyline High has exposed students to the internal kindness and inspiring nature of Dropbox employees. The company has committed to its goal of being a good neighbor, providing students with access to computer science skills, donating laptops and even spending time helping teachers prep for the upcoming school year.

Last December during Skyline High’s Computer Science week, employees from various teams and roles in the company came to speak to students about their daily responsibilities and different career path options. In order to immerse students in the culture fully, seniors from Skyline are invited to Dropbox offices to shadow and get upfront insight into what days are like for employees.

Whether students decide to take a career in computer science, engineering or marketing, it’s important to see representation of themselves before they decide. Engagement from employees who are already in these roles can provide a clear picture of what steps to take and how to get there.

If you see yourself being a part of the BlackDropboxers team that enjoys giving back to its community, check out Dropbox’s open positions on its job page.

This piece is brought to you in partnership with Dropbox.

Skyline High

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