Shokouh \u201cSho\u201d Shafiei understands from personal experience the critical importance of mentorship.![\"\"](\"https:\/\/youthbizalliance.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Sho-Shafiei-Headshot-300x300.jpg\")
Her path started when she emigrated to the U.S. from Iran when she was 18. She worked in construction for more than two years while learning to speak English. She then started at a community college, ultimately transferring to a university and then finding her professional career path. And all along the way, she relied heavily on formal and informal mentors to guide her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t be where I am today if I didn\u2019t have mentors that saw something in me and took a chance. I\u2019ve always felt that I should pay it forward and take a chance on teens that don\u2019t have the best advisors in their immediate families.\u201d<\/p>\n
That’s why Youth Business Alliance\u2019s mission and programs truly resonated with her, and she decided to get involved as both a guest speaker and a corporate partner.<\/p>\n
Sho\u2019s only request to YBA was that\u00a0DSA\u00a0Signage\u2019s involvement stay in their local community of Compton. \u201cWe know our community can really use help. And we wanted our employees to take part in bettering the community in which they live.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/youthbizalliance.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Sho-Shafiei-Classroom-Guest-Speaking-300x225.jpeg\")
Sho\u2019s first YBA guest speaking event was at Animo Compton High School, where she presented to more than 20 seniors who were considering college. \u201cTo try and connect, I asked the students if they\u2019ve been in these sessions before \u2013 many said yes. Then I asked if they were bored and distracted. Not surprisingly, another yes. And when I asked why, they said, \u2018we don\u2019t relate to the speakers.\u2019 When I leveraged my background \u2013 an immigrant, working in construction, and not having many advisors guiding me as to how best to move forward \u2013 I become much more relatable.”<\/p>\n
DSA\u00a0Signage then hosted Animo Compton students for an on-site field trip and plant tour. One of the key parts of the event was an interactive panel discussion with members of the\u00a0DSA\u00a0team, representing engineering, marketing, facilities, and supply chain management.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/youthbizalliance.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/DSA-Tour-300x200.jpg\")
One of the highlights of the field trip was an exercise run by the supply chain team. \u201cWe had students divide into three groups to create an art project representing who they are and what they thought of their school. Then we offered to take their art and actually produce it and install it at their school. It\u2019s currently in the works!\u201d<\/p>\n
Sho wants to continue\u00a0DSA\u00a0Signage\u2019s partnership with YBA as she sees the value of providing mentorship for local students as well as a great feeling of community volunteerism for her staff. \u201cWhen our team is engaged and feeling like they\u2019re making a difference, that\u2019s what\u2019s most important. We all want to wake up wanting to do something good every day. That\u2019s why we need more organizations like Youth Business Alliance that focus on areas where we can truly make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Shokouh \u201cSho\u201d Shafiei understands from personal experience the critical importance of mentorship. Her path started when she emigrated to the U.S. from Iran when she was 18. She worked in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2226,"featured_media":2330,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2327","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uncategorized"},"yoast_head":"\n