Meghan Markle dons letterman jacket gifted to her at her last solo royal engagement as she and Prince Harry make surprise visit to an ‘alternative’ Brooklyn school – where Duke warned students to keep tabs on each other  during ‘mindful meditation session’

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have paid a visit to a Brooklyn school that has been touted as an ‘alternative to college,’ with the Duchess of Sussex wearing the letterman jacket she was gifted during her last solo engagement as a working royal.

Ahead of their appearance at New York City‘s Hudson Yards for the Archewell Foundation Parents’ Summit: Mental Wellness in a Digital Age, the couple appeared at The Marcy Lab School, which aims to prepare ‘young adults of color for rewarding, wealth-generating careers in the tech sector’ within just one year of education.

Images shared by Harry, 39, and 42-year-old Meghan’s friend and go-to media member Omid Scobie show the duo posing alongside several students at the school, with the Duchess sporting black skinny jeans, a form-fitting black top, and a pair of heels — along with the letterman jacket that she received from a debate team at a school in the UK back in March 2020.

‘Today, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan visited @MarcyLabSchool in New York,’ Scobie wrote.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle has paid a visit to a Brooklyn school, with the Duchess wearing a letterman jacket she was gifted during her last solo engagement as a working royal

The visit came ahead of their appearance at New York City’s Hudson Yards for the Archewell Foundation Parents’ Summit: Mental Wellness in a Digital Age

‘It’s one of America’s only alternatives to a traditional four-year college, offering a one-year, full-time fellowship in software engineering. Students pay no fees — it’s funded by philanthropic support.

‘Fun fact: Meghan’s varsity letterman jacket was given to her by the debate team at the Robert Clack School in Essex, England during her March 2020 visit.’

Scobie added that Harry and Meghan joined a ‘mindful meditation session’ during which the students open up about how they are feeling. He said that the Duke of Sussex advised the class: ‘If one of you starts to go quiet, doesn’t show up, you need to find out why.’

As she entered the school, which benefited from an Archewell Foundation grant earlier this year, Meghan reportedly told students: ‘We’re happy to be back in New York City.’

During their visit, Harry encouraged the students to look out for one another.

‘Everyone’s got their own story, a reason for being here, your life is still going to be filled with complications and challenges. And if one of you starts to go quiet, doesn’t show up, you need to find out why,’ he said, according to People.

He also asked the group: ‘What excites you the most and scares you the most about the online world?’

His wife then chimed in saying: ‘I think my husband was asking about online spaces because it’s a place where so much community can be built, but there’s also so much vulnerability. 

Images shared by Harry and Meghan’s friend and go-to media member Omid Scobie show the duo posing alongside several students at the school. The Duchess is pictured sneaking in a hug

The Duchess sported black skinny jeans, a form-fitting black top, and a pair of heels – along with the letterman jacket that she received from a debate team at a school in the UK back in March 2020

Scobie added that Harry and Meghan joined a ‘mindful meditation session’ during which the students open up about how they are feeling. Pictured is Harry with some students

‘There’s a lot of saturation, and as parents, we can be hopeful knowing that your bright minds [are at work], knowing that they will be seen, valued and growing in the right direction. And that’s why it’s so important what you’re doing at the Marcy Lab.’

After departing The Marcy Lab School, the pair made their way to Hudson Yards to begin preparing for their summit.

They made their appearance at the venue about 11:30am, two hours before they were scheduled to take to the stage for the event.

During the event, the couple said they would endeavor to ‘give voice to families who are passionate about building a safer online world for children and teens’, according to a statement shared with People.

They were set to discuss initiatives that are ‘creating positive change’ and speak with parents who had suffered ‘tragic loss connected to their child’s social media use.’

According to the Archewell Foundation’s website, Marcy Lab Fellows are aged between 18 and 24 years old who take part in a year-long fellowship that teaches them software engineering jobs, which sets them up to land tech jobs.

The program also integrates mental wellness and civic engagement into their curriculum. 

After departing Marcy Lab School, the pair made their way to Hudson Yards to begin preparing for their summit

They made their appearance at the venue about 11:30am, two hours before they were scheduled to take to the stage for the event (pictured) 

During the event, the couple will endeavor to ‘give voice to families who are passionate about building a safer online world for children and teens’

The school was founded in 2019 and since then 128 of their graduates have gone into software engineering, with jobs ‘at companies around the world.’ 

Arriving at the summit, Meghan sported a strapless white strapless blazer with matching white pants and heels, while her husband donned a dapper navy suit. 

The couple were all smiles as they arrived at the venue, however they appeared to get emotional once the event kicked off, with both seen looking incredibly somber as the panel commenced — with parents who have ‘suffered tragic loss connected to their child’s social media use’ taking to the stage to share their stories.

Video taken inside the event, which was posted on Twitter, shows Meghan embracing several of the speakers after they walked off the stage after addressing the gathered crowd. 

Harry and Meghan’s appearance at the festival comes just hours after Harry’s brother Prince William and his wife Princess Kate hosted their own mental health day event in the West Midlands. 

The Sussexes pulled up to the summit in a convoy of seven blacked-out vehicles —five months after the pair were involved in what they described as a ‘near catastrophic car chase’ in Manhattan.

The couple arrived at the World Mental Health Day Festival in Manhattan in a fleet of seven blacked-out vehicles 

Harry and Meghan drove straight into an underground garage where they were closely monitored by a team of security guards 

It marks their first-ever in-person event for their charity, the Archewell Foundation.

Tuesday’s event, which sees the couple joined by Today show host Carson Daly and US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, marks the couple’s first joint appearance in New York since the notorious ‘car chase’ that they were caught up in back in May, after attending the Women of Vision awards. 

On this occasion, the pair appeared to have taken rather stringent steps to ensure their safety – with a marked NYPD escort accompanying their SUV fleet to the event location at Hudson Yards. 

Questions still remain over Harry and Meghan’s account of the car chase, which a statement from the couple’s spokesperson described as being ‘near catastrophic’. 

The spokesman said the couple, as well as Meghan’s mom Doria Ragland, were the victims of a ‘relentless pursuit lasting more than two hours’ at the hands of ‘highly aggressive paparazzi’. 

It has been suggested that they were trying not to be followed to where they were staying on the Upper East Side of the city.

However, New York police subsequently told NBC that they did not believe the chase was ‘near catastrophic’, instead describing it as a ‘bit of a chaotic scene’.