A group 41 of low-income high school students from Los Angeles and Bernalillo counties waited outside the SUB Ballroom on July 28 for their graduation from the L.A. Works program.
The program is meant to encourage low-income students to attend college, said Daniel Noriega-Lucero, a tutor and mentor in the program.
"It's a great program," he said. "These kids come in and you can tell that they are tough. Through the program, we break them in, and by the end they're sad to leave."
The program is in its 10th year.
Eliseo "Cheo" Torres, co-founder of the program, said 78 percent of students who complete the program attend college.
In addition, 99 percent of students in the program graduate from high school, said Sal Velasquez, co-founder of the program.
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"This has been a side-benefit of the program and was not one of the original intentions," he said.
Velasquez met Torres in 1996 while searching for a university to help motivate low-income students to go to college.
Such programs could help decrease dropout rates around the U.S., which range from 10 percent to 30 percent, Torres said.
Edgar San Juan, a UNM student who participated in the program in 1999, said it encouraged him to go to college.
"I didn't have the income to see college life, and the program allowed me this opportunity," he said. "I learned how to apply for college and financial aid."
The graduating students received T-shirts and certificates during the ceremony, and academic awards were given to outstanding students.
During the two-week program, the students experienced the classes and the work that are part of college. The students worked campus jobs half the day and attended class the other half.
The program also paid application fees for each student to apply to four colleges, Velasquez said.
The students attended mentor groups every evening to discuss problems they were having with class or work.
The students were chosen through a process similar to applying for college, including an application, transcript and essay, Noriega-Lucero said.
Most of the students are between 16 and 18.
The program is funded by state and federal money.
