GEAR UP and TEAM FIRST, Inc., Partner with St. John’s University for College and Career Symposium in Queens on June 2

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May 31, 2017

St. John’s University’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) in partnership with SJU Athletics and TEAM FIRST, Inc. will invite over 1,000 middle school and high school students to St. John’s University’s Queens Campus for the 2nd Annual College Career Symposium on Friday, June 2.

The event (to be held from 10am–2pm in Carnesecca Arena) is designed to empower students to begin preparing for college now.  The day includes a college and career fair; Test Your College Knowledge Quiz Bowl, campus tour and celebrity guest panel to be moderated by Tarik Turner, TV analyst for Fox Sports 1 and SportsNet New York (SNY) and member of St John's University Board of Governors.

The panelists will include:

  • Conrado (Bobby) Gempesaw, Ph.D., President of St. John’s University, will give the welcome address to all students to tip-off the event.
  • Metta World Peace (formerly known as Ron Artest Jr.), is a 17-year veteran American pro basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). World Peace gained a reputation as one of the league's premier defenders as he won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2004, when he was also named an NBA All-Star and earned All-NBA honors. He won an NBA championship in 2010 as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. He played for St. John’s University from 1997-99 and took the Red Storm to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament in 1999. He finished his two-year college career with a record of 50-19 and was named Third Team All-American (one of the Top 15 players in the country) as a sophomore.
  • Amanda Nguyen currently serves as Deputy White House Liaison to State Department and recently received the distinguished honor of “30 under 30” for “rewriting the law” on protecting the civil rights of sexual assault and rape survivors though her RISE foundation. In February 2016, legislation she helped draft was introduced in Congress; seven months later, former President Barack Obama signed the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Rights Act into law.
  •  Stuart George has been recognized by Black Enterprise as one of the 75 Most Powerful Black Men on Wall Street. As Senior Vice President of Equity Trading at Macquarie Investments Management, he is responsible for managing all aspects of the firm’s equity trading. Additionally, he trades small and mid-growth stocks for the firm that has more than $155 billion in assets.
  • Crystal Barnes is the Senior Vice President of Global Responsibility and Sustainability for Nielsen, the world’s leading marketing and media information system. She is responsible for Nielsen’s social and environmental responsibility program across the areas of philanthropy, volunteering, and pro bono investments.

For more information about the event, contact Dr. Yvette Morgan, Director of SJU GEAR UP at 718-990-2531 or via email at [email protected].  Interested media can contact Dominic Scianna, Associate Vice President for External Relations at St. John’s University by calling 718-990-6185 or e-mailing inquiries to [email protected].