Leading a Brighter Future

Established by the Upper School, the Institute for Responsible Citizenship, and the Alumni Association, the Trailblaze program provides space for students to grow in their curiosity.
For aspiring professionals, the potential avenues of employment a student can pursue sometimes seem endless. There’s politics and law, banking and finance, communications and marketing, engineering and science, and that doesn’t even cover the specifics within each of those fields or the fields that don’t exist yet. The list goes on, which is both daunting and encouraging. 

That’s why, each summer, Collegiate offers rising Seniors the opportunity to participate in Trailblaze, a job shadowing program that connects students with Collegiate alumni. Established by the Upper School, the Institute for Responsible Citizenship, and the Alumni Association, Trailblaze provides space for students to grow in their curiosity. The program expands and specifies students’ focus; they become more familiar with the jobs within a field and the opportunities available to them. “Trailblaze is a powerful reminder of what makes the Collegiate community so special,” says Director of Alumni Engagement Anne Gray Siebert ’97. “Through the generosity and kindness of our alumni, our students gain access to incredible opportunities that help shape their futures. From hands-on experiences in medicine and finance to creative fields like design and media, the doors our alumni open are truly life-changing.”

Eleanor Qureshi ’26 operates with a certainty unique for her age. She knows what she wants to do, and she’ll tell you as much with an enthusiastic clarity that makes you believe she’s already been in the field working for 10 years. A passionate percussionist and member of the Richmond Symphony, Eleanor wants to pursue a specific field of music education nonprofit management. “I realize that’s very niche,” she says, “but because of my involvement with the Richmond Symphony, I’ve seen the good that nonprofits like that can do in providing broader access to music education. That seems really cool — and really important — to me.” 

In the spring of 2025, students like Eleanor submitted a Trailblaze interest form to participate and were placed with businesses and organizations that fit their potential career interests. Paired with Elizabeth Dolan Wright ’01, who serves as vice president on the board of the Science Museum of Virginia Foundation, Eleanor was able to take a deep dive into the intricacies of nonprofit management. “Nowadays, it’s difficult to find internships that are offered to high school students — let alone one that you’re actually interested in,” Eleanor says, “so being given the chance to work with an organization that pairs with something I’m passionate about was really unique.” 

She arrived at the office of The Science Museum of Virginia Foundation on an early Tuesday morning in June, bubbling with excitement and apprehension. She had beaten the traffic on her morning commute, the first morning commute to an office she had ever taken. She was stepping into an office setting for the first time, too. In fact, it was a week of firsts. First meetings, first strategic communications conversations, first emails, first lunch breaks. 

Finally stepping into that world was thrilling to her, like a traveller boarding a plane after months of vacation planning. Each day, through the connections of Dolan Wright, she spent a few hours shadowing a different supervisor. She was fascinated by the process of website management and the creativity of the communications team. She was blown away that someone had the job of overseeing the interior design of the museum. She worked on consolidating membership data. She learned how to write donor solicitation emails and the strategy behind those emails. In a four day work week, her world expanded. “I learned a lot, but what I took away from that week was that I can do this,” she says. “It's always really scary when looking into the future and considering entering the workforce. Like, I'm 17 and I’m going to college next year. But after Trailblaze I realized that it’s not an evil world out there. I learned a lot about myself, built up a lot of self confidence, and feel much more certain about my career trajectory.” 

Any unknown is intimidating, but once we step into the world of the unknown, whatever apprehensions that once plagued us tend to fall away. In this sense, Trailblaze provides space for students to explore those unknowns alongside fellow Collegiate alumni. After all, that’s what alumni are there for: Creating a bridge for students between the classroom and the world, offering an extension of a collegiate education. “Trailblaze really shows how much of a family Collegiate really is,” Eleanor says. “We have connections between Lower, Middle, and Upper School students here on campus, but we also have alumni across Richmond and Virginia generally that remain connected with the School that are willing to support students.” 
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