The dreary Friday morning downpour failed to dampen the crowd’s excitement at the grand opening of the Microsoft Store at the Walt Whitman Mall in Huntington Station, NY.  Microsoft event and store staff got the SRO audience hyped with contests, music and a John Legend/Taio Cruz concert ticket giveaway. But for the Children’s Aid Society’s Carrera Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program (CAS-Carrera), the high point of the day was the ribbon cutting ceremony, wherein the program received a $250,000 in-kind donation of Microsoft technology.

The gift was facilitated by CAS-Carrera partners Junior Achievement, which was tasked by Microsoft to select local program partners to share in the $1 million award for the New York area. The JA curriculum serves as the cornerstone of CAS-Carrera’s employment component – Job Club –  which helps young people envision productive lives by exposing them to the world of work. Job Club, one of seven core components of the holistic, evidence-based CAS-Carrera program, is designed to improve financial literacy and develop life-long, positive financial decision-making through employment opportunities, entrepreneurial and community service projects, and personal bank accounts.

“We are thrilled and honored to be the recipient of the extraordinary generosity of Microsoft and Junior Achievement. Hundreds of young people in New York City will benefit tremendously from this cutting-edge technology that will enhance our financial literacy and college savings initiatives. The confidence and support of JA and Microsoft will advance CAS-Carrera’s objective of providing young people with rich opportunities to move from potential tax burdens to prospective tax payers,” said Dr. Michael A. Carrera, Director of CAS-Carrera.

If you’d like to support CAS-Carrera’s work with JA and other dedicated community partners, please donate here.