I have the privilege of serving as the Chairman of the Board for College For Every Student (CFES). I have been involved with CFES for the past 14 years and it has been an honor to be associated with the pre-eminent organization of its kind, raising the academic aspirations and performance of underserved youth. The essence of CFES is the engagement of each Scholar in three high-impact Core practices of Leadership Through Service, Mentoring, and Pathways to College. These three practices help student scholars gain college access and success-which is more important than ever in the 21st century. The excellent results of CFES Scholars demonstrates the value of these three practices. CFES is also blessed with outstanding 21st century leadership in its Staff Members, Program Directors, Board Members, TASK Force Members, and particularly the CFES President & CEO Dr. Rick Dalton. It is through Rick Dalton's vision, stewardship, and leadership that CFES continues its prominence and sustainability in working with underserved youth across the nation.
College for Every Student is a powerful and much needed program for urban youth. Initially, when I was asked to volunteer as a faculty advisor for CFES, I was hesitant. My thoughts were great another activity that will take up my time. But, boy was I wrong because I watched our students become completely engaged in the each of the three core practices of CFES. Through their engagement, I witnessed a genuine transformation in them. For the first time in their lives, many of these students began thinking about their future, setting goals and realizing that they had options! These self realizations have empowered our students. We have seen an improvement in their attendance, grade point average and citizenship. Our students, or as we call them, scholars have taken on more than 20 Service through Learning projects since we began CFES. We have had over 150 students involved in our Mentoring program and thanks to our commitment to CFES; we have sent every student in 6th, 7th and 8th grade to visit our local colleges. Our school, Wilson Middle School, in Erie, Pa is now one of 7 middle schools in the country to be named a CFES School of Distinction. CFES has given us a foundation to create a positive and scholarly climate in our school that gives students the tools to realize and begin reaching their higher aspirations.
I work in an urban school as a college access coordinator for the past 3 years and CFES has been a wonderful support for my students. It has given my students the ability tour colleges that they would not have the opportunity to visit and make a difference in their community through leadership through service. CFES believes very passionately that every student has the ability to attend post secondary education. That is why I Iove CFES!
I teach in an urban high school and have seen the impact of CFES up close and personal. CFES provides exposure to college for underserved students and support through mentoring and community service projects that encourage these students to aim high. This year, we had 3 CFES seniors graduate and pursue their education at a local university as the firsts in their families to attend college!
I have worked with CFES for several years. The support that CFES provides to a small, rural school like the one at which I work is tremendous. The three practices of Mentoring, Pathways to College and Leadership through Services are an important piece to our students' educational program. The support provided by our regional director as well as the the mentoring program director are vital to our CFES programs success. This program has helped our students, elementary through high school. Once our students are exposed to a college campus and are encouraged to seek this next step in their education, they know it can be a reality.
CFES is a very powerful program that works to help students of all ages, in and after school. We have a Pre K to 12 school and every student is involved in CFES programs. It can be pervasive or as involved in your school and student body as you'd like it to be.
^th grade teacher; Rebecca Powierza wrote: This is our fourth year with CFES. It has helped our school tremendously with exposing our students about colleges, working on service projects as a whole, and definately mentoring. Our school started our mentoring program with 6th graders. They mentor our 4th graders on a weekly basis. We have now added 5th grade and we work with some of our 7th and 8th grade mentors. Our mentoring program has changed a lot of our students. A few of our 6th graders were really struggling in class both academically and behaviorally. Our mentoring program has given these students more responsibility. They now wanted to show their mentors that it is important to get your work done and act appropriately in school. This than started to change our 6th graders. They started to have more pride in their work and started to act appropriately in class, their grades started to improve. Pathways to college, helped our students learn more about college life and want to go to college at a younger age. We are fortunate to have 4 local colleges near us that we are able to visit, have college students visit our schools, and we have some programs that both the school and colleges work together on.
I cannot begin to express my gratitude towards the hard working staff of CFES. Thanks to their dedication and committment, my students are enrolled in more challenging course work, have applied to and have been accepted to higher tiered colleges than ever before. The teachers involved have been rejuvinated and come to work with the energy they had when they started. I just do not know where we would be without all of this positive support.
Our affiliation with CFES started with the first schools a long time ago. Our students have benefited in so many ways there isn't room to list here! The organization sponsors all areas that are most important for students to succeed: mentoring, leadership and a path to college. So, as a K-12 building we are able to reach all students in our school through at least one of the core practices. Not only do small rural schools struggle with poverty, they struggle with keeping students in school and wanting to continue school. Without CFES our students would not achieve or want to achieve success. We are so grateful for CFES and all it does for our kids!
tHIS IS MY SECOND YEAR WORKING WITH CFES ITS A GREAT ORIGNAIZATION THAT HELPS STUDENTS GET INTO COLLEGE, TEACHERS STUDENTS TO BE LEADERS IN THEIR COMMUNITY AND IN THEIR SCHOOL THRU CFES STUDENTS BECOME MENTORS TO YOUNGER STUDENTS AND HELP THEM AJUST . C.DONNELL
CFES is a wonderful program that inspires high school students to attend college through its three practices: mentoring, leadership through service, and pathways to college. There are many students that have had poor attendance, poor grades, and were at risk of dropping out of high school until the joined CFES. After joining the CFES mentoring program, their grades and attendance improved, and they went on to college. Our students can give many testimonials regarding how CFES changed their life. In addition, the CFES program makes it possible for ALL STUDENTS in high school to go on college visits. They tour campuses, eat in the dining hall, hear admissions and financial aid presentations and more. This simply would not be possible without CFES. Similarly, CFES Scholars complete community service activities as a way to give back. I cannot say enough about this valuable program. Thanks CFES!
There are countless ways CFES is an extraordinary nonprofit organization. However, if I had to pick just one way CFES is extraordinary, it would be that through its three core practices, (mentoring, leadership through service, and pathways to college), CFES Scholars become more resilient, gain stronger leadership skills and learn to successfully navigate the world around them. These youth discover first hand that their involvement is part of the solution and they are the answer. Thank you, CFES!
What can I say about CFES? I have worked with CFES for the past four years as a teacher advisor. Our students have learned responsibilities through peer mentoring and community service projects. We have also increased our students' interest and knowledge about higher education through college visits and fairs and college research projects. Every year, we have seen steady gains in our test data and we feel this is a direct result of our school's implementation of CFES.
This is my fourth year as a CFES advisor and over the course of those 4 years, I have had the privilege to witness many successes through the programs implemented in our district thanks to our affiliation with CFES. Through student-led projects, we have been able to reach out to our younger students and expose them to the possibility of college at an even earlier age by engaging them in our College Awareness Week. Every year, after the week is over, I receive at least a couple of notes from young students telling me that until then, they had never thought college was for them. I have seen students emerge and develop as leaders through the service project opportunities offered. I have also seen students do a complete 180 in terms of grades and behavior because of their connection to CFES and involvement in some of the programs implemented in our school. One of the most successful program would be our Community Mentoring Program, which pairs all of our Juniors and Seniors with volunteer adults from our community. These mentors have opened so many doors for our students while acting as a source of guidance and support for our young adults that they have become a viable link to the high school success of our students. As an educator and the club's advisor, there is no doubt in my mind that CFES has changed (or at least altered) the course of many of our students towards better, more successful tomorrows.
CFES, has been amazing it has provided the support services needed to ensure underserved students gain college exposure, awareness and go on to college upon graduation from High School. The organization has been instrumental in our 96% college admission rating for students graduating from our school. The organization has a wealth of knowledge and resources necessary to promote academic improvement and success.
CFES has been one of the most helpful organizations of my high school career. I was a mentee in my first two years and learned through my mentor and trips to national universities not only how to get to college, but also how to become a leader in my community. Now, as a mentor myself, I find any opportunity to help my peers make the big leap into their college years. I don't know where I'd be without my CFES Advisor and all the other leaders in this amazing program.
I have worked with CFES at my school for three years! CFES does wonderful things for our students - introducing them to college, proving mentoring, and leadership opportunities through service. Our students are now more aware of what a college campus looks like, feels like, and how to get there! We have taken some wonderful college visits to Paul Smith's, SUNY Plattsburgh, UVM, and Canton. We pair our college visits with business visits so that students can see the skills that apply to the workplace. Our NCCS students are flourishing! Thank you, CFES!
I have worked with CFES since I was in the 10th grade. They came into my school and gave us students the opportunity to learn about college and explore the options that we had after high school. I was raised in a home that was virtually poor and no one before me had ever gone to college, so it really wasn't an option for me. CFES changed my entire perspective on what 'I thought" college was. All of the things that I thought would hold me back from going to college were the very things that CFES reassured me wouldn't. With the help of CFES I became a scholar, a leader, a mentor, a role model and a college graduate. I am also pursuing a medical degree as well.
CFES is an outstanding organization that truly benefits students. By following their three objectives; pathways to college, mentoring and leadership through service students are exposed to a variety of educational experiences that promote academic success. The positive practices that are exemplified helps unite schools toward our mission of high school achievement as well as post secondary exposure. As a CFES School of Distinction, Willsboro Central School students have visited numerous colleges, participated in exchanges with other high schools and received community mentors to help guide them through the college search process. "I would recommend ALL schools become involved with the College For Every Student organization," says Stephen Broadwell, Superintendent of Schools.