This year, Cardozo’s law program has a new addition to their already successful education track; a partnership with the FBI.
The partnership, which began this school year and will run until June, consists of sessions where agents of the FBI come into the school to present different aspects of the agencies work. This opportunity is beneficial to students in the law program who seek to pursue a career in the FBI post-high school and college.
According to Assistant Principal Mr. Georgatos and law program coordinator Ms. Amato, the program also allows agents and facilitators to look for recruits and students who are interested in working in the FBI. The partnership began through the “Adopt a School” outreach program, which allows federal agencies and organizations to connect with schools to emphasize the importance of exposure and for students interested in similar fields. An alumnus from Cardozo works as a community outreach specialist, and helped bring the partnership in, too.
The first session that was conducted was about the FBI’s cyber division, emphasizing the importance of cybersecurity and the dangers it poses to individuals and national security. “The FBI cyber division helps impose risks and consequences on cyber adversaries through unique authorities, world-class capabilities, and partnerships,” explained FBI agent, Trevor Colandrea, who was the agent who led the session.
Colandrea has an immense amount of experience. He worked as a civilian engineer in the Navy where he learned a multitude of skills. He starting in the FBI in 2012 at the Boston field office. During his first year as an agent, Colandreahad to endure the Boston Marathon bombing. Now, in the FBI, he has the responsibility of supervising national security teams.
The sessions that the FBI is offering the students of Cardozo through their partnership showcase the different sectors of the industry and the FBI overall. These sessions are planned out to help students have an understanding that there is no linear path when working in the FBI and instead, there are many pathways to success in the agency.
“I think the partnership will benefit other students and me by showing us not just new career opportunities, but what the FBI is really like,” said Colin Shult, a senior at Cardozo. “It exposes us to different aspects of life in the agency, what really goes on, and the missions and purposes they serve.”
The end of the program will be conducted at the FBI headquarters in Manhattan, where students will have the opportunity to have a tour, be able to ask questions, and have a memorable experience.
“I’m very interested in that,” Shult said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The most exciting thing is being able to meet all the different special agents and learn their stories, the missions they’ve gone on, and the places they’ve been.”
Other students have mentioned that it will help assist them in finding out the different opportunities and careers available at the FBI, and how that will help them have a guideline of careers students might want to pursue.
“I think it’s cool because we’re going to be able to take a trip to their headquarters soon and see what goes on for ourselves,” said senior Anjali Nauth. “They also talk about a lot of diverse career paths that you can have in the agency.”
For other students, this program will help them create more networks and mutual relationships to gain insight and a more comprehensive perspective from the agents.
“Through this partnership, we can learn more about the details of their jobs,” said Brian Feng, a junior. “Some students are even interested in working with the FBI, so being able to meet agents and network with them is really valuable.”
Feng also mentioned that this is a great opportunity to meet these agents and to really delve into their careers to gain perspectives and to get the insight that is important to know for the student. “We actually get to meet the FBI agents and ask questions about their work,” he said. “If you stand out and create that relationship, you might even get a reference from one of the agents.”
Throughout the program’s entirety, various agents will attend the sessions at Cardozo and discuss various aspects of the FBI. The next session coming up will focus on behavioral analysis and counter-terrorism, which allows students to gain insight into the multitude of work the FBI does and the complexities that are involved.
