Last week, First Graduate® high school girls had a special opportunity to participate in the launch of a new event: Women’s Colleges: Pathways for Emerging Leaders. They joined together with local alumnae of Mount Holyoke College, Scripps College, Simmons College, and Spelman College to learn how attending a women’s college shaped the alumnae’s college experiences and
It’s that time of year again! As some of our older students step on campus to begin their first semester of college, our youngest students have returned to Everett Middle School and James Denman Middle School to begin their 7th and 8th grade years. With backpacks, new haircuts and a few new inches in height,
“What does it mean to be the first in your family to go to college?” Our newest class of rising seniors, FG 11, sat in a circle at the Point Bonita YMCA and were prompted with this question. Although the week we spend with our students during the college application retreat involves us breaking down
This summer we were thrilled to partner with GoogleServe, bringing 24 Google volunteers to participate in our middle school summer program. At First Graduate’s summer program we strive to combine rigorous summer academics and college readiness with camp-like fun activities that middle school students love. The summer program is our middle school students’ first step in their
If First Graduate® students have a rite of passage it has to be Presentations of Learning. Every year we invite our high school students to reflect on what they learned during the past year that will help them improve in the year to come. Students write out their thoughts, convert them into a 10-minute speech, and perform
What: First Graduate® is looking for volunteers to work 1:1 with college students to coach them through working towards a 3.0 GPA. Coach 3.0s will have weekly or bi-weekly conversations with students on the areas needed to excel academically. Check-ins will include conversations on helping students set up a work plan, identify resources, and holding them accountable. This is a wonderful opportunity to build
Last week I had the honor of attending Yinia’s (she’s a high school senior, or FG 11 if you’re in the know) presentation at Exploring Leadership Social Enterprise Pitch Night. With just a few hours of preparation, she and her group created a business plan for an app that addressed voter rights and awareness. After pitching
“What were you like when you were our age?” This is the secret question that all middle schoolers have for adults. Kids want to see the child behind the grown-up: the journey that took place from elementary school to college, from hometown to big city, from summer jobs to high-power careers. What music did you
The College & Career Team (we work with First Graduate students during and after college) is excited to begin working with FG10, our newest class of incoming college freshmen! To kickoff their journey in college, we recently hosted a 2-day Transition to College (T2C) event. During T2C, students reflected on their identity as a first-generation college
The day started bright and early as we rounded up our excited students and boarded the bus. Meg Ramey was in charge of our group, with me and Jayda Shuavarnnasri accompanying as chaperones. After we arrived, we had lunch in the UC Santa Cruz dining hall. We all had a tough time holding back—it was
