On the road to College and beyond!
As part of its mission, CLASE has developed several initiatives to provide English language learners with the tools necessary to apply for, enroll in, and finish college. This begins in high school. Through SALSA (Summer Academy for Language, Science and Aspirations), a major initiative to reduce the achievement gap and promote a pipeline to college, CLASE works with rising 9th and 10th grade high school students in a fourweek summer enrichment program. This unique model coordinates school district and university partnerships and focuses on science, academic language and college awareness and aspirations. This initiative is pivotal in identifying and encouraging future Latino college students and providing future leadership for the community. Like the tutoring program, the SALSA program provides a pipeline of support where Latino college students assist younger students just determining what their educational path will be. The SALSA programs have had impressive results. Over 85% of the SALSA students have graduated from high school (compared to the average of less than 55% of students from comparable demographics). Furthermore, over 60% of the students who graduated from the first cohort are currently attending college.
In another collaboration with teachers at local high schools, CLASE runs an after school scholarship-writing club, which culminates in a weekend writing retreat. UGA undergraduate and graduate students participate as tutors and mentors for ELLs and other students drafting scholarship and college application essays. CLASE also collaborates informally and formally with individual Latino undergraduate and graduate students and student groups at UGA to promote their retention, academic success and graduation.“After I finished the program, I was so motivated, I didn’t want to keep it to myself, I wanted to share it with my friends” —SALSA Student