Overcoming the Odds
The High Potenial Program
at Saint Mary's College of California
By Tom Brown

Solange's work eventually took her to Washington, DC, where she became a legislative aide for Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania) on matters of health, welfare, education, and housing. Today, Solange is Chief of Staff for Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas), the first Black person to be elected to the U.S. Congress from Dallas. In reflecting recently on her own experiences, Solange recalled the saying, "Being the first isn't as important as making sure you're not the last."

In 1968, the Saint Mary's faculty voted to waive "some or all of the usual entrance requirements" for students whose disadvantaged backgrounds prevented them from demonstrating their potential for academic success through the traditional indicators (e.g., courses, test scores, high school grades). In 1973, the College implemented a comprehensive support program that was christened the High Potential Program (HP). In the intervening 25 years, HP has enabled more than 500 students to "scale the wall" and become the first in their families or communities to graduate from college. Indeed, many of the programs initially developed for HP students are now available to all Saint Mary's undergraduates, including free tutoring, writing courses, and an academic advising program that actively reaches out to support students.

Brian Stanley has always been very direct in telling people that he "shouldn't have" made it to Saint Mary's. "Sadly, too many young men from my community end up underemployed, dead, or in jail." A graduate of the Class of 1998, Brian now is Assistant Director of the Annual Fund at Saint Mary's and works to increase financial aid endowments for needy students. A former offensive lineman, who gave up the sport he loved to concentrate on his studies, Brian is also a role model and mentor to students in Justin Hall, where he serves as a Resident Director. In reflecting on his dual responsibilities, Brian insists, "The primary reason I work at Saint Mary's is to repay the College and HP for taking the risk with me when I had come to believe that I wasn't 'good enough' for college. Saint Mary's provided me with an education I could never have afforded. It gave me confidence, a sense of self-reliance, and a commitment to serving others. HP taught me that failure is not an option."

Patrick Diaz attended St. Raymond's, a Lasallian high school in the South Bronx, and was introduced to Saint Mary's by a Lasallian Volunteer. "God is a big part of our lives, and my mother always said that He had plans for me. But the College was another world, another universe from where I grew up." He continued, "HP was like a family that gave me the strength and support to get through. It gave me the tools to succeed not only at Saint Mary's but in life." A corporate recruiter for a high tech firm, Patrick observed recently, "My mother has always been the queen of my soul; nothing will ever outshine the pure joy and pride on her face the day I walked across that stage to receive my diploma."

An Irvine Grant enabled the College to hire Dr. John Dennis to serve as the program's full-time director. Affectionately called "Dr. D." by his students, he exemplifies the Lasallian call to be with students "from morning to night." He spends three full weeks with new HP students each summer in a transition program that prepares them for the demands of college. The program simulates the academic schedule and includes an Iliad-based seminar, writing workshops, and sessions on time management, stress reduction, and valuing diversity. A traditional highlight is a "ropes course" whereby students develop partnership and trust while pushing themselves to their limit -- walking a tight rope, climbing a telephone pole, helping each other to scale a wall. Dr. D. says that HP teaches students that SUCCESS = Commitment + Determination + HARD WORK, over time. For the past five years, the HP student graduation rates have averaged slightly higher than for the College as a whole!

Angela Calvillo had been homeless for three years -- working odd jobs during the day, sleeping in parks and women's shelters at night -- when she was introduced to HP at the ageof 23. She recalls, "The smartest and richest girl in my high school was accepted to Saint Mary's, and I always thought if I had been privileged, I could have gone there too!" Angela adds, "HP gave me the support my family couldn't, despite all their love. HP said, 'We're here to catch you, so keep going.' The program gave me the confidence . . . I could do it." Angela recently left her position as an aide to a San Francisco Supervisor to pursue her dream of becoming an attorney.

This school year, 22 new students entered the High Potential Program after undergoing a rigorous application and interview process. Students must provide detailed information about their backgrounds and identify the obstacles that prevented them from achieving their full potential in high school. Often, HP students have achieved very high academic levels in schools that are not as rigorous as college preps. In these cases, students who have been the "stars" of their schools must be willing to accept the support and remediation HP affords. Sophomore, junior, and senior HP students are expected to serve as mentors to new students. Also, graduates often return to motivate new students, as Tammy Ramos did last fall (see story on page 2).

Lilly Woo's parents sold all they had to buy the small boat that carried them away from Vietnam when she was one year old. The third of four daughters, Lilly says, "HP opened the door for me. I always doubted my ability. Looking back on my HP class, there are so many successful people who never would have had a chance without HP.

"At the conclusion of the summer program, students are asked to write an essay on the topic, "Striving to Become a Master Student." In hers, Sandra Simeon wrote, "We all possess the ability to accomplish whatever we set our minds to. I am guided by the quotation, 'If you can conceive it and you believe it, you can achieve it!' You believe that there is a power within each of us to do great things if we are committed." In a similar essay, Maria-Pia Silva wrote, "Becoming a master student means being courageous and going beyond what I think I am capable of." Sometimes moving beyond one's beliefs is difficult, as noted by freshman Saul Ruiz: "I am struggling with math as we speak. My problem is this: not having the courage to ask questions when I don't understand something. Habits are hard to break; admitting that you don't understand is hard."

John Dennis says he has come to understand that working for HP is more than a job; it is a way of life. He concludes, "To witness the fruits of countless hands-on connections among the students and the entire College community epitomizes the dream of Saint John Baptist de La Salle."

In his remarks to the 1996 Lasallian Assembly at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, Brother John Johnston, Superior General of the Christian Brothers, reminded those gathered that, "Lasallian schools must be places where excellence means more than who has the highest test scores." The High Potential Program at Saint Mary's College is at the heart of the Lasallian mission to offer "a human and Christian education to the young, especially the poor." Based on faith and love, HP is an example of surrendering to the will of God. The program gives disadvantaged young people a reason to hope and be optimistic about themselves and their futures.