Agustin T
Community Engagement Manager
After Meta Academy, externs leave confident in their abilities and empowered to use the skills they have learned to lead themselves into a future they once thought was not possible.
I’m a community engagement manager on Meta’s State Policy team. Part is my role is focused on education initiatives in the communities surrounding Meta’s headquarters. In the summer, I manage a program called Meta Academy.
Meta Academy is a summer externship program designed for high school students from the local community. The Academy is a career exploration program, where externs experience what it is like to work in tech, learn how to code, and develop soft skills that will help them in their education and career.
The cohort of externs is made up of mostly first-generation students (students who will be the first in their families to attend college) and students of color. This program is always the highlight of my year. As a first-gen student and former resident of the local community, I see the positive change the externs go through over the course of the program.
Most externs start the Academy insecure and unsure of what they are capable of. After 6 weeks of being a part of the Meta community, externs leave confident in their abilities and empowered to use the skills they have learned to lead themselves into a future they once thought was not possible.