NDC, Black in Jewelry Coalition Unveil High-School Program

The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) and the Black in Jewelry Coalition (BIJC) have teamed up to launch a jewelry education program for high-school students.

The pilot program will allow students to connect the classroom to the working world through several activities, including professional shadow days, internships, and competitions, the organizations said Wednesday. The goal of the program, which will begin in fall 2024 at Baldwin High School in Baldwin, New York, is to give students a taste of each sector of the jewelry industry to help ensure success as professionals.

The project serves as a “catalyst towards realizing our collective mission of building a more equitable future for the diamond jewelry industry,” said NDC managing director Kristina Buckley Kayel. “Our ambition is that this program serves as a pilot to be rolled out to high schools across the country.”

To bolster the project, the groups said they would pause funding for the Emerging Designers Diamond Initiative (EDDI) for 2024. The EDDI program is a partnership with celebrity high jeweler Lorraine Schwartz that has provided wide-ranging support and mentorship for 18 Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) designers to break into the jewelry trade.

The new program aims to foster students’ passion for the jewelry industry while introducing them to modern and ancient manufacturing techniques, according to BIJC board president Annie Doresca. “Introducing such programs to high school students is a positive direction towards enhancing diversity within the industry and making a meaningful impact,” she said.