Yesterday I had lunch with my mentee who will be attending UC Santa Cruz this fall. He has endured a lot of hardships and moves in his life, having left an abusive situation in his native country of Colombia to live with relatives in Richmond. We discussed a lot of issues, but he wanted to make sure I knew how blessed he felt for joining College Is Real, having a mentor, having the opportunity to go to college and having the hope of a better future. I have to say this validates to me what an extraordinary organization CIR is and the impact it has on these kids’ lives." - CIR Mentor
LEARN MORE ABOUT BEING A MENTOR
What Is Being A Mentor Like? The Mentor Program Become a Mentor - Next Steps
What Is Being A Mentor Like? The Mentor Program Become a Mentor - Next Steps
LEARN MORE ABOUT COLLEGE IS REAL
The Need
Our Success
- Most of the students at Richmond High School are from low income backgrounds, Latino, and would be the first in their families to graduate from college. At De Anza High School, 90% of students are from minority populations, mostly African-American and Latino, and 70% are economically disadvantaged. Lastly, students at Kennedy High School, 98% of the student body are minority.
- Richmond High School dropout rate: 30%
- Acceptance rate of non-CIR students to four-year colleges: RHS 14%, DAHS 32%
- A student from a family in the lowest economic quintile has only a 14 percent chance of winding up in one of the top two quintiles without a college degree, and a 45 percent chance of never making it out of that bottom bracket.
- A student from the lowest economic quintile who earns a four-year degree has a 40 percent chance of making it into one of the top two quintiles — and just a 16 percent chance of remaining stuck at the bottom.
Our Success
- Graduation rate: 100%
- Acceptance to four-year colleges: 90 - 100%
- College attendance rate: 90 - 100%
- More than 450 students from RHS, DAHS, KHS in the program and more on the waiting list
- More than 125 CIR alumni attending or graduated from college
For more about the College Is Real program, visit collegeisreal.org