Whitefish Bay Alum Shares Business Tools With At-Risk Students

Mentoring programs around the country match students with businesses, but rarely do they connect students directly with the executives of these companies.

Andy Arlotta, a Whitefish Bay High School alum who now lives in St. Paul, is one of the executives partnering with the program to share the business management skills he utilizes every day as the co-owner and vice president of the Minnesota Swarm, an indoor lacrosse team in Minnesota.

The program, known as Imagine the Possibilities, was developed by Risen Christ School, a 335-student, grade school located in the Powderhorn Park area of Minneapolis. Imagine the Possibilities pairs top executives from about two dozen companies with up to six students in grades 7-8.  The business leaders-turned-mentors expressly design a project related to their field to be presented over the course of the school year to their group of six students. 

“I am very excited to design my program around the business side of managing a professional indoor lacrosse franchise and to help my students better understand how aspects such as revenue generating, marketing, and networking play critical roles in running a successful organization,” Arlotta said. “In the end, I hope to provide my students with a valuable learning experience that they will be able to utilize when they enter the workforce.”

Arlotta is a member of the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals and a graduate of its Leadership Saint Paul program. He serves on the board of directors for Homegrown Lacrosse, Minnesota Lacrosse Association and the Jefferson Awards, a national recognition system honoring community and public service in America.

He was also recognized by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal with its “40 Under Forty” award, which honors outstanding professional achievement and a commitment to community service. He also was selected as one of 50 local leaders to take part in the Minneapolis-St. Paul InterCity Leadership, which addresses local community economic development, education and urban issues.  He received his bachelor's degree in Corporate Communications from Northern Illinois University.

More than 95 percent of RCS’s students come from families who are living either at or below the poverty line. Many of these students will become first-generation high school graduates. Because these students have limited contact with the world of business, the school believes its students will benefit from personal interactions with business leaders. 

Imagine the Possibilities allows experienced executives to contribute their knowledge and leadership to positively influence kids who might otherwise never reach their potential.

“The approach is both innovative and creative,” said Fran Rusciano Murnane, RCS’s director of advancement and Imagine the Possibilities program manager. "Business executives engage with students on many levels, creating opportunities for developing new insights and gaining knowledge that can influence, inform and enlighten other students. 

“Broadening the educational experience of our students provides them with options that can lessen the limitations poverty imposes.”

Student participation includes field trips that demonstrate the application of what is learned from each business executive, which help youth understand the importance of their education in preparation for future careers. The program is funded in part by an inner-city education grant from the GHR Foundation.

Last school year – the initiative’s first year – Imagine the Possibilities received the award for Best Program of the Year from the Minnesota Independent School Forum for its academic achievement.

“The success of the program has exceeded all expectations,” Murnane said. “But what’s as exciting is the unanimous commitment by these business leaders to return to mentor again.”