Fourteen high school students and 32 college students spent their spring break this year at L’Oréal USA’s Fifth Avenue headquarters in New York City.

The beauty company organized a week of workshops and job shadowing for the students, as part of the Role Model Program created by the New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women.

“L’Oréal USA values programs that empower women and girls,” said Antoinette Hamilton, L’Oreal USA’s assistant vice president of Diversity & Inclusion.

Hamilton continued, “In 1999, our initial grant enabled the New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women to expand its Role Model program beyond the borough of Manhattan, into Brooklyn and Queens, to students of Medgar Evers College and Queens College. Since that time, the program has further expanded to include York College, LaGuardia Community College, and others, and now also includes high school girls.”

Through its multi-year partnership, L’Oréal is proud to have contributed more than $300,000 to the Role Model program including more than $15,000 in scholarships awarded annually to program participants.

The college students were selected from City College of New York (CCNY), LaGuardia Community College, Medgar Evers College, Queens College, York College–and new to the Role Model Program this year–John Jay College of Criminal Justice. The high school students attended the Women’s Academy of Excellence in the Bronx or are members of the Xinos Group of the National Sorority of Phi Beta Kappa in Queens.

The scholarship winners were, first place, Nacilia McCarthy of York College; second place, Carlene Bobb of John Jay College, and third place, Stephany Ramales of LaGuardia Community College.

Photo: Antoinette Hamilton, AVP of Diversity & Inclusion at L’Oréal USA addresses the New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women’s 2013 Role Model students.

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