Paid Summer Internships Connect Monterey Area Teens to Career-Building Opportunities

Monterey, Calif. – Bank of America today announced two high school rising seniors from Watsonville and Notre Dame High Schools have been selected as Student Leaders® (#BofAStudentLeaders), where they will participate in an eight-week paid summer internship from June through the end of July 2024. The students will be assigned roles with local nonprofit Boys & Girls Clubs of Monterey County, learning about local community needs while developing leadership and workplace skills and earning competitive wages. They will also receive financial education coaching from Bank of America’s Better Money Habits curriculum. 

With changing economic environments, young people need access to workforce experience and career skills-building opportunities. The private sector can play a role to help better position young adults to be successful in today’s workforce. Along with the Student Leaders program, Bank of America is connecting local teens to on-the-job and real-life skills training paid internship programs, in addition to educational and career programs at Hartnell College, Rancho Cielo, and DigitalNest. 

“By providing career and leadership development opportunities for teens, we can help develop the next generation of skilled workforce that is essential to Monterey County and surrounding area’s longterm economic growth,” said Jennifer Dacquisto, president, Bank of America Monterey Bay. “These students are truly exceptional - the opportunity for them to work with a highly impactful local nonprofit like Boys & Girls Clubs of Monterey County and offering them financial education will help prepare them for future success.” 

The class of 2024 Monterey Area Bank of America Student Leaders are: 

• David Rocha-Vargas of Pajaro is an impressive senior at Watsonville High School whose leadership efforts promote wellness and academic success. During the recent floods in Pajaro his family was forced to evacuate and displaced for weeks until it was safe to return, David supported his family with part-time jobs. This experience also ignited his commitment to help address homelessness. During the school week, he works as a tutor in a daycare, for his church, and coaches young athletes in track and field. David also helps to care for both of his disabled parents. 

• Lauren Asuncion of Salinas is a rising junior at Notre Dame High School. She is an avid volunteer, a participant in multiple clubs on campus, in ASB, and the founder of the Cinema Club. Lauren was raised to honor her seniors and is dedicated to working with the elderly and issues surrounding loneliness within the senior immigrant community having seen how 2 vulnerable they are to depression in particular. She coordinates student efforts to write cards to seniors and visit them to make them feel valued. In addition, Lauren is committed to the environment, working to shift perspectives toward sustainable and thoughtful consumerism, eliminate waste, and encourage more recycling. She is an artist with one of her paintings currently on display at the US Capitol in Washington D.C. 

Later this summer, the Student Leaders will travel to Washington D.C. for a week-long, all-expensespaid, national leadership summit focused on the power of cross-sector collaboration and community advocacy. Student Leaders from across the nation will discuss the importance of civic engagement and meet with members of Congress. 

The Student Leaders program annually recognizes 300 or more community-focused juniors and seniors from across the U.S. Since the program has been offered in Monterey Bay in 2019, 12 teens have been selected as Student Leaders. 

Bank of America 

Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management, and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 68 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs, and award-winning digital banking with approximately 56 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking, and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions, and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories, and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. 

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Reporters may contact: 

Colleen Haggerty,
Bank of America Phone: 1.213.621.7414
colleen.haggerty@bofa.com 

or
Esmeralda Owen
Phone: 1.213.220.1174
esmeralda.owen@ext.bcw-global.com