‘Grit and Hope’ Follows San Diego Students’ Path To College

Am I allowed to go to college? That's one student asked before learning about a transformative guidance program in San Diego called reality changes. The story of the change that program brought into the lives of five Latino students is documented in a new book called grit and hope. The students were the first in their families to aim for college education. Challenges they face in their determination to succeed is an inspiration and perhaps an influence for other school college programs. I spoke with Barbara Davenport, other upgrades and hope. I'm delighted to be here. We talked about statistics about Dorshimer led him to drop out of school. We hear the phrase the achievement gap but that doesn't really tell us anything. What did you find out about the challenges that some students face and make finishing high school and moving on to college difficult? I saw two kinds of contributors to the achievement gap. One was a lack of resources. Again and again students would say my mom and dad want me to go to college but mom went through 10th grade my dad quit school at the third grade and that was in Mexico and they just don't know how American school system works. If you and your family has gone to college, the easy assumption about how this is done and how the student might do it just aren't there. The other Farrior students face was a sense this wasn't for them. The program you mentioned that helped them aim for college in your book is called reality changers. Was founded by UC San Diego graduate, how did that program get started? In 2001, Christiana was 23 years old year of college. Substitute teaching at middle school in Clermont. It was a tough school. Most students for immigrants were children of immigrants and many of them spoke in a language other than English at home. Yan Altstaetten that his students were just as bright and determined and imaginative as a middle-class kids he had grown up with. What they lacked was an ambitious vision of what they could accomplish. Being held to high standards and a set, and the value of peers and adults can support them in their efforts. He found reality changers to provide that kind of scaffolding for them. He started with four integrators and $300. What is the program like now? They just had their graduation celebration a couple weeks ago at this point the program has enrolled 500 students enrolled in 200 students graduated this May. They will be going to all the UC's colectomy, the 200 graduation students, and $10 million in scholarships. Tell us more about the students you profile. And the Robert rejoined really changes in eighth grade because his mother told him to. He wasn't particularly interested in it. He said he spent his first two years getting off, attending halftime, breaking every rule the program had. He got in a number of fights and he said he lost count of the suspensions at school. The end of his sophomore year he got into it with his math teacher and shoved the teacher into a bookcase. The principal recommended him for expulsion. To Robert's enormous surprise, Christiana off showed up at the expulsion hearing and educated -- advocated for him to stay in school. Said he was a member of reality changers and -- 100% a student to stay in through high school go to college. Robert was shocked and amazed he had given them and nothing but every -- aggravation and the man is stepping in to save him. In the next two years, he really turned it around, transfer to a different high school, lost his bad news friends, made 3.5 grade point average. In the spring of Junior, his mother was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer. He is world began to, but by that time he felt he had enough support from reality changes that what his focus was all through the rest of his junior year and into his senior year was raising money to walk the Susan, and three day. He has since gone on a Cal State and is doing very well for himself. Reality changers has been called a model for the nation. What does the future hold for them, could become a national model? Yes, and no. Yes, it's a supermodel and it's already been influential in all kinds of school settings in San Diego County. What models is a program run on modest resources and meeting once a week, setting, holding high standards for disadvantaged youth can be highly successful. That's a lot of goodies. When I say yes and no, I wince when I think about the complexities of scaling up programs to a national scale. I think, reality changers influence may be most important improving this can be done. That's more for -- more important than cloning of the country. Other Barbara Davenport will be speaking about her book, great and hope this Saturday at the first Unitarian University church in San Diego. Thank you. Thank you.