Transforming JetBlue’s Network Through Mentorship

Jun 20, 2017 9:15 AM ET

“I have enjoyed the JetBlue program. They treated us with respect. It was good that they said, ’We are not people with disabilities, we are people with different abilities.’”

—Viviana Guzman, Graduate of LaGuardia Community College in Queens, NY

Acquiring the right talent takes commitment. In 2016, we continued our effort to build our network through mentoring programs for vets, individuals with disabilities, and underrepresented groups of emerging talent.

JetBlue currently has 1,300 veteran crewmembers. Our VetConnect program assists newly hired veteran crewmembers to transition from military service into life at JetBlue – a shift often fraught with challenges, but more easily overcome with another veteran as a mentor.

Via Reaching Blue Heights, and our partnership with the Henry Viscardi School, which helps educate, employ, and empower children and adults with disabilities, we demonstrated practical pathways to employment across six cities at Disability Mentoring Day events.

This year we launched High Velocity Mentoring. Similar to speed dating (but less awkward), this program allows students to interact one-on-one with crewmember mentors to gain a deeper understanding of possible aviation career paths.

To learn more about JetBlue’s long-term responsibility platform and to view the full report, visit responsibilityreport.jetblue.com/2016