Alliance for College-Ready
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Student Life
It’s a busy and well-rounded life for Alliance students. Their top priority is mastering the academics that will prepare them for college. At the same time, their calendars are crisscrossed with a menu of other lively experiences offered by their schools - all instructive, interesting, and fun.
Welcome to College
A group of College-Ready Academy High School students brought the college in their school’s name to life during a weekend visit to UCLA this spring.
The tenth graders took their first university tour lead by mentors from the Riordan Saturday Business Academy. Riordan Fellow Laura Mondragon spoke to the students from a personal perspective about overcoming challenges on the path to college. She is currently a Cornell MBA student.
The students also watched the final round of the Riordan Scholars Stock Market Competition, which took place at UCLA’s Anderson School of Business Management.
A Dance to Their Future
A different sort of dance delighted more than 40 young women from Heritage College-Ready Academy High School during a trip to the Los Angeles Music Center for a performance by the world-acclaimed Alvin Ailey Dancers. “This was a very special afternoon for all of us,” reports Joy May-Harris, Heritage’s Instructional Assistant Principal. ‘The girls were mesmerized by the music, the dance, and the Music Center.” For some of the girls, it was their first trip to the LA arts destination.
The entire experience was possible by the generosity of Gayle Miller, a member of the Alliance Board of Directors.
Ms. May-Harris underscores the educational value. “The girls read the bios of the dancers, where they came from and how they earned a place in the Ailey troupe. It was clear how important education, college, and hard work were for every one of them,” she says. “The Heritage students didn’t miss the message.”
It’s a Home Run!
Thousands of baseball fans at Dodger Stadium on May 3 watched as the flashboard exploded in light and animation “Welcome Heritage College-Ready Academy.” The thousand-watt flashboard message honored the special Heritage teens who earned 3.5 GPA or better during the last marking period.The students and parents watched the game from a corporate suite, enjoyed the food, and posed for photos that are posted at Dodgers.com. “It was so cool. We got an opportunity that not many people get,” said Heritage honor student Ruby Hernandez. “I’ve gotten good grades before. But I never was honored for it before.” Anthony Urzua, who has a 3.8 PGA as does Ruby, described the evening as “great!” He also noted that its effects stretched from Dodger Stadium to the Heritage campus. “It was such good treatment. It’s motivating other students to work harder to get good grades,” he explained
Heritage Principal Harry "Doc" Ervin said, “Unfortunately, the Dodgers lost. But our students won big.” The evening was provided by Alliance Board member Arthur Levine. “The kids were ecstatic that someone cared enough about their hard work and success to recognize them with such a special treat,” said Alliance CEO Judy Burton.
Music, Mentors, and Student Success
Tuesday afternoons at College-Ready Middle Academy is a time described by students as “cool” and by teachers as “enriching, and academically valuable.” The afterschool program that meets weekly on Tuesdays is called The Story Project, a program created by RKO Pictures, that combines trained mentors, creative standards-based language arts projects, and eager sixth graders. “Four mentors, young men who work in the music industry, are teaching our kids creative expression through writing, poetry, and music,” explains Principal Donna Jacobson. “Students write in journals, compose rap songs, and work on other language arts activities.”
The Story Project was founded in 1997 by RKO Pictures executives as a way to help urban students build academic, professional, and life skills through creative expression. The CRMA students prove their enthusiasm for the afterschool program by their perfect attendance. “They never miss,” reports Ms. Jacobson, “and we expect to see their language arts test scores improve as well.”
Preparing to be College Ready Literally
Some students at Huntington Park College-Ready Academy High School are attending college and high school at the same time.
The class schedules for these HP teens include anthropology, botany, or Spanish IV. Heady academic stuff for any student, but particularly attention-getting for ninth graders because the classes are college courses taken at East Los Angeles Community College. “It began from my casual suggestion that they might enjoy trying a college class on the weekends,” explains Principal Laura Galvan. Her students took it from there.
The college courses are taught on Saturdays, and Ms. Galvan will give them an elective credit for every class they pass. “When most teens are sleeping late or hanging out, our kids are on the ELA campus, expanding their skills and personal experience,” she explains. The plan is to enlarge the program so that students can take remediation classes as well as regular college curriculum such as French. “Imagine,” she says, “Our kids could be tri-lingual and get academic credit for another foreign language.”
The word about taking college classes is spreading among the students at HPCRAHS. The trailblazers are high academic achievers. But now other teens are asking about summer school possibilities and beyond. Ms. Galvan observes that the college experience might create new interpersonal connections as well as expanded academic opportunities.
