For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                 Contact:  Rick Dalton

April 3, 2009                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       802-236-1235

WANT TO GO TO COLLEGE?

THEN LEND A HAND TO SOMEONE ELSE

April Events Put NYC Students in Charge of Their Own Destiny

WHAT:           “Mentoring, Leadership, Success” – an initiative to boost and reinforce college-going aspirations among New York City schoolchildren aged 8 to 18. The students, all from low-income households, forge their own path to college by becoming part of a network of peer-to-peer mentors.

WHO:              Students from 22 New York City schools, who are following a three-point process that has led more than 100,000 K-12 students in 540 schools across the nation to achieve measurable gains in academic performance, graduate from high school, and pursue higher education.

WHEN:           On Monday, April 6, from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m., students from Wadleigh Secondary School for the Visual & Performing Arts in Harlem and from Willsboro Central School in Willsboro, New York, will read to as well as discuss the importance of preparing for college to elementary school students from P.S. 197 (John P. Russwurm School) at

                        On Tuesday, April 21, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., students from a dozen NYC schools will participate in a Leadership Summit held in the Faculty Dining Room at Hunter College. The students will share insights on how they are creating a “college-going culture” in their schools, and the steps they are each taking to forge a path to higher education, despite economic challenges.

NOTE TO MEDIA:   These events will be led by College For Every Student (CFES), which uses a three-point process to boost college aspirations and admissions among students from economically challenged urban and rural communities. Through Pathways to College, CFES Scholars visit college campuses, interact with college students and faculty, and gain exposure to admissions and financial aid processes to prepare for college. Through Mentoring, CFES Scholars build on their own life experiences to mentor younger students. All CFES Scholars also participate in Leadership through Service activities, which require them to demonstrate leadership through community service. Since 2006, 96 percent of graduating CFES Scholars have gone on to college.