Imparting a lifetime of leadership experiences to a cadre of international students in two weeks seems like a daunting task, but few are more well-equipped for that job than Jay Sidhu.
Sidhu, Customers Bancorp executive chairman, has spent decades overcoming the challenges inherent in building small banks into some of the largest in the nation.
He, along with Alvernia University and a team of executive volunteers, shared their accumulated wisdom at Alvernia in June, during the first ever Never Ever, Ever Give Up Global Leadership Boot Camp.
Jay Sidhu listens as Sandy Solmon, founder of Sweet Street Desserts in Reading, speaks during his entrepreneurial boot camp at Alvernia University on Thursday, June 25, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/MEDIANEWS GROUP)
The event, which ran from June 14 to June 26, was designed for children of members of the Young Presidents’ Organization, the world’s largest leadership community of chief executives.
The organization describes itself as a “global leadership community of chief executives driven by the belief that the world needs better leaders.”
Sidhu said the camp’s goal was to challenge those from privileged backgrounds to solidify visions of the good that they can offer the world.
“What we’re doing here is exposing them (to) the experiences of different entrepreneurs,” Sidhu said. “We’re talking about resilience, hard work, and never, ever giving up. The importance of dreaming big, being creative, being disciplined. All those are life skills, and usually you learn them all by the time you are 60 or 70 and the wisdom suddenly hits you. We wanted to give all those life experiences in a compressed way.”
The camp involved about 40 students from around the U.S. and the world, mostly age 15 to 17, including some from Europe, South America, and the Middle East.
Tuition was $7,995, and covered housing, meals, programming, travel excursions and more.
True to its name, the boot camp directed attendees through an intensive experience that pushed them to think critically about their goals, and develop the interpersonal skills, tactical savvy, and technical know-how needed to achieve them.
Daily workshops emphasized subjects like how to maximize impact with AI, communications skills in the digital era, developing an entrepreneurial mindset, and maintaining mental wellbeing.
The event featured numerous local executives who spoke and directed activities, such as Greg Header, namesake of Alvernia’s Header School of Business; Brian Johnson, CEO of Mail Shark; and Barry Schlouch, president at Schlouch Inc., as well as Young Presidents’ Organization representatives like Navilka Varma, clinical psychologist and managing director of YPO Pretoria.
Sidhu’s children, Sam Sidhu, president and CEO at Customers Bank, and Luvleen Sidhu, chair, CEO and founder of BM Technologies Inc., also spoke during the event, sharing perspectives on growing up and choosing a career path, among other topics.
Sandy Solomon, founder and CEO of Sweet Street Desserts, Reading, spoke about her journey growing the global commercial bakery, and the strategies and rituals she developed to achieve success.
“People love to say creativity is a gift, that people are just born with it,” Solomon said. “I don’t believe that for one second. Creativity isn’t solely a gift, it’s a muscle. And like any muscle, you can build it, and you can develop rituals that help you carry that neutral, open-minded state that (fosters it).”
Solomon said her ritual includes habits like breathing exercises and Kundalini yoga to promote optimism and an open mind.
“Say yes to the scary thing and then figure out how to do it,” Soloman said. “If you wait until you’re ready, you’ll be waiting your whole life. Ready is a myth — jump, and build your wings on the way down. On some level, that is the nature of an entrepreneur.”
Sandy Solmon, founder of Sweet Street Desserts in Reading, speaks during Jay Sidhu’s entrepreneurial boot camp at Alvernia University on Thursday, June 25, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/MEDIANEWS GROUP)
Students also toured notable hubs of leadership in Philadelphia and New York City, such as University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, the U.S. Capitol Building, the United Nations headquarters, and Independence Hall.
They met with congress and senatorial staff, a U.N. ambassador, and participated in the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
Participants also visited local sites, such as Nolde Forest Sanctuary, where the lessons focused on sustainability.
Sidhu said he’s had extensive experience holding leadership boot camps for school districts and colleges in the Berks area and beyond, including events for underprivileged students.
“We’ve learned from those experiences and brought all that together here,” Sidhu said. “The kids (at this camp) come from privileged families, but that doesn’t mean you are a very satisfied or a successful human being… our objective was to try to create 40 leaders here that will have an impact.”
Alvernia University was an ideal partner for the camp, because of the university’s commitment to education that nourishes the mind, body and spirit, said Alvernia President Dr. Glynis A. Fitzgerald.
“Here we can ensure that these students are going to leave with really great entrepreneurial skills, really great skills in AI, but also that ethical courage that we want our young people and all our leaders to have,” Fitzgerald said.
To that end, students were tasked with devising solutions to solving real-world problems that resonated with them.
Jimena Maroto, a participant from Costa Rica, said she aimed to create a database to preserve fading elements of her country’s language and culture.
“Usually, when people go to study aboard and leave our country, they start not using (certain) words anymore,” Maroto, 15, said. “The language starts getting lost. Newer generations stop using it.”
She said her proposal was to create a community-based dictionary for Costa Rican slang.
“Sometimes, these words that make me, me — don’t translate to English,” Maroto said. “What I could do is show you on my phone the word that I’m trying to find. What it means, where it’s from, audio of a native person saying it.”
Another student, Mia Capasso, 16, of New York City, said she and a team partner came up with an idea for an orally ingested medicine that would help people remove microplastics from their body.
“I think a passion of mine is helping other people and keeping people healthy is a big part of that,” Capasso said. “We did some research and there’s one patent similar to our idea, but the engineering is completely different and the materials we need are a lot cheaper, so we can make it accessible to more people.”
They said the boot camp has helped them map and envision their goals.
“Jay and the speakers have helped so much,” Capasso said. “With dreaming big. I really just want to grow this and help people around the world.”
The program ended with a graduation ceremony in the New York Stock Exchange board room.
The New York Stock Exchange welcomes Customers Bancorp Inc. and the Never Ever Ever Give Up Global Youth Leadership Boot Camp in collaboration with YPO and Alvernia University. Jay Sidhu, Customers Bancorp executive chair, joined by Tara Dziedzic, NYSE Head of US Listings, rings the closing bell. (Courtesy of NYSE)
Photo Credit: NYSE
Sidhu said he’s heard from many participants that the camp was among the top of their list of activities they’ve participated in.
“Youngsters here have been to Yale camps, Harvard, Cambridge,” Sidhu said. “You know what they said? Alvernia is in that company.”
He said the camp sets itself apart by being a legitimate “boot camp.”
“This is not a summer camp,” Sidhu said. “(Boot camps) get the marine corps ready to protect the county. We’re getting leaders of the world ready to take on the world.”
Sidhu said he intends to bring the Never Ever, Ever Give Up camp back to Alvernia next year for another two-week round.
“We want to make it even better,” Sidhu said.