"I want to see all hairdos, styles, and colors and a client-driven education for our students," says Bisi Lipede, who coordinates a work-study program for 270 Cristo Rey Boston High School students who work part-time corporate jobs throughout their four years of normal schooling. Not only do these students have some of their tuition reimbursed for their efforts, but they learn, at a very young age, what it means to hold down a job in a professional environment. Using her own corporate techniques honed at a large consultancy, Accenture, Bisi engages parents, students, and over 100 business partners to help these students begin charting a successful course toward college and beyond. Having started her journey studying biology at MIT, Bisi has meandered toward this job her whole life (whether she knew it at the time or not!), and credits this one thing to her success: "the capacity to be persistent."
