Meet Elizabeth, BLCI student and senior at the Preuss School, UC San Diego. Elizabeth began attending BLCI programs when she was in the 3rd grade and credits staying through her senior year because she says the program empowers its students to pursue their dreams of attending and completing college. Elizabeth was one of the seniors in attendance at the holiday party hosted by Petco, PetContigo, HP and the San Diego Padres, and she spoke about how BLCI programs have impacted her education.
“BLCI has an incredible way of engaging its students with fun activities. One of my earliest memories was chanting “Who wants to go to college? We do!” Through these forward-thinking activities, BLCI was able to strengthen my skills, such as studying, collaboration and public speaking.
Helping facilitate these activities is a hardworking team of amazing student mentors and tutors that help to guide the students to their goals. At a young age, I struggled with math as equations and simple math wasn’t really my strong suit, but I wanted to better myself with the subject I truly disliked, so I sought help from BLCI. BLCI was able to provide the assistance that I needed, by assigning me with a math tutor that I would see regularly for many years. Now, I am a senior taking Calculus and I honestly enjoy what I am learning in that class. I feel that if I hadn't received the extra math support that early on, I would still be struggling to understand and enjoy a core subject that is needed to be college ready. The BLCI crew has been instrumental in providing not only academic assistance, but a real-world perspective on their career experience, which helps connect students to their calling at a more intimate level and help them grow their passions.
Another useful aspect of the program are the many College and Career fairs held regularly. These fairs host colleges from around the country, as well as people in any field of work you could imagine. I only grew up only knowing about colleges located in California, but BLCI opened my eyes to the other schools around the country that could be my future. I remember, as a child, listening to one of the Princeton admissions officers who had a booth that was located in the multipurpose room for BLCI students to learn more about this prestigious college during the college fair. This is one of the colleges that I adored at a young age to the point where I told myself I would attend this school.
To this day Princeton is my dream school and I will soon submit my application there. The career fairs BLCI held were also experiences that helped me indicate what I wanted to focus my learning on and my possible career. I would speak to Teachers, Lawyers, and Doctors and be inspired, knowing that I could potentially be in any of these fields when I grow up.
The most inspiring aspect of BLCI was its way of celebrating its students. Whether it be a student graduating for the first time from BLCI’s elementary school program alongside the high schoolers, or celebrations like tonight, BLCI has always provided me with a taste of success, of what it would mean to graduate high school and eventually go to college.”
Thank you to Petco, Petcontigo, the San Diego Padres and HP for their ongoing support and dedication to breaking the cycle of poverty through education.
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