Origami Expert. Bookkeeper. Martial Arts Instructor. Nonprofit Executive Director. IT Network Administrator. Fitness Instructor. Business Manager. Capoeira Teacher. Fifth Generation Washingtonian.
Although N’Kosi Ayize’s current title is Student Support Specialist (S3) at LAYC Career Academy, he has held all of these roles. Some may think that these identities contradict one another but those who know Mr. Ayize well understand that they create one cohesive and interesting person. In fact, this large number of eclectic interests are part of what make him such an excellent Student Support Specialist. He understands that all people are multi-faceted and he wants to support his students holistically in all of their complexity.
Mr. Ayize first joined Career Academy in 2014 as a part time fitness instructor. When he was teaching fitness classes, he worked closely with Career Academy’s student support team and became intrigued with their roles. “I really loved the holistic perspective that student support specialists brought to their work. They help with food, motivation, haircuts, job resources, and so much more. They support the total person. That is the mission and flow of Career Academy.” When an S3 position became available in early 2018, Mr. Ayize joined Career Academy full time.
Throughout his time at Career Academy, Mr. Ayize has been very popular with students. Student and Career Academy Board Member, Justin Lofton, explained the sentiment that many students shared, “It was just a natural connection between us. We both shared a lot in common, basically.” Mr. Ayize has a natural talent to see the whole person in each of his students and to connect deeply and on many different levels. This talent has paved his success in so many different jobs. We are happy to have him as a part of our team.