BFIT recognized for supporting first-generation students of color in higher education
Special advertorial education section
Author: Photo courtesy Benjamin Franklin Institute of TechnologyBenjamin Franklin Institute of Technology
Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology recently earned The Janus Award from Codman Academy, a charter public school in Dorchester. The Janus Award honors an institution that is committed to supporting first generation students of color in higher education. BFIT was also recognized for its dual-enrollment program Early Access to College, which enables students to earn college credit while still in high school. The previous award recipients were the College of Holy Cross and Bottom Line.
BFIT president Anthony Benoit received the award on behalf of the college from Mary Weber, President of Codman Academy’s Foundation Board during the school’s 11thcommencement on June 8 at the Boston Center for the Arts. Two Codman Academy graduates, Manuel Baez and Wilson Oller, will be attending BFIT in the fall semester.
“It is a great honor to receive this award from Codman Academy, a school that is so focused on community and leadership,” said Benoit. “Our institutions share a common goal of empowering young people to succeed through education.”
The college’s skills-based curriculum, strong industry partnerships, and innovative programs in STEM, make BFIT a vital part of Boston’s economy. Unfortunately, only 13 percent of all STEM jobs in the U.S. are held by Hispanics and African-Americans combined, according to a 2013 report by the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee.
BFIT places a very high percentage of its graduates into jobs or further higher education, and approximately 70-percent of its students are minority. BFIT offers college degrees and certificates in high-demand fields of technology, such as automotive technology, building technology, construction management, HVAC&R, mechanical engineering technology, opticianry, and technology business and management.
