NAF Honors Dedicated Partners, KPMG LLP and RTX, at 20th Annual Benefit
All Photos; Credit: Liz Devine
On Wednesday May 8th, NAF held its 20th annual Benefit at Metropolitan Club in New York and had a lot to celebrate! This year, we were proud to honor partners KPMG LLP with the Corporate Citizen Award and RTX with the James D. Robinson III Award for Corporate Innovation.
NAF Chief Executive Officer, Lisa Dughi, said, “Our annual Benefit was the perfect time to come together and celebrate the very best of the NAF Network! We were proud to honor both KPMG and RTX for their support of our mission and helping to advance this important work even further. This special event was also an important opportunity to highlight our talented students and the impressive contributions that they are making. We thank all our stakeholders for joining us and taking this opportunity to network, share best practices, and make new connections.”
The Benefit celebrated nearly 45 years of transforming the high school experience and provided an opportunity for supporters to meet the outstanding students and alumni at the heart of NAF’s mission. High school students and educators were in attendance and presented their work-based learning projects – demonstrating how they have used their classroom and real-world experiences to prepare for college and careers. They included: NAF Academy of Engineering from Manhattan Bridges High School in NY; NAF Academy of Hospitality & Tourism from the Academy of Finance and Enterprise in NY; NAF Academy of Finance from Passaic County Technical Institute in NJ; and NAF Academy of Engineering from Phelps A.C.E. High School in Washington, DC.
NAF Alumni, Marcela Harmuch, a Senior Associate of Forensic Advisory Practice at KPMG, and Melisa Lezcano, an RTX intern, honored their partner employers, KPMG and RTX, respectively, with their individual awards. The moment was powerful for all in attendance, as the full circle of NAF’s design was on display – spotlighting the progression of academy students to partner employees.
The event also honored the life and legacy of 43-year NAF Board Member, respected business leader, and former American Express CEO, James D. Robinson III, who recently passed away. Robinson fiercely understood the role business could play in shaping the future workforce and was a committed supporter and advocate of NAF. Under his direction, American Express became one of NAF’s founding donors, helping to launch the first NAF Academies of Finance and Hospitality and Tourism.
A special highlight of the evening included remarks from NAF student speaker, King M., a junior in the NAF Academy of Engineering from Phelps A.C.E. High School in Washington DC.
King shared how he always aspired to a career as a professional blacksmith, so that he can continue his family legacy.
“The blacksmith trade is in the family … My grandfather on my mom’s side is a carpenter and an actor. He built and fixed most of the items in his home, even making a shed from scratch in his backyard. He even showed me how to use a few of his tools. And my grandfather on my dad’s side was a jeweler who worked with all kinds of metal like gold, silver, and even copper which also inspired my passion to be a blacksmith.”
King decided to enroll at Phelps because of its reputation for having stellar NAF academy STEM programs.
“I was curious about their engineering courses, and I figured it would be a great foundation for my blacksmith goals,” King added.
This annual signature event highlighted the tremendous collaboration between industry and education, that drives NAF’s innovative programming and improves outcomes for over 113,000 students annually and offered opportunities for fundraising and donations.
