The San Diego Unified School District has renewed an agreement with San Diego State University that’s helped hundreds of Hoover High School students go to college, according to the district.
The College Avenue Compact guarantees admission to SDSU for Hoover graduates who earn a certain GPA and meet other requirements. It started in 2011 to guide students on a path to college, especially those who are the first in their family to attend.
“The beauty of this partnership is that students within the community have access to their neighborhood college,” said Erin Richison, who oversees the district’s high schools. “The partnership allows them to see that attainability and see themselves represented within the university.”
Fabiola Bagula, a deputy superintendent for San Diego Unified, said that mission is personal.
“As a first-generation – Latina, daughter of an immigrant – college graduate, this is so important to note that there is a lot of support out there for our students, but also that it takes a whole community,” she said.
Students at Hoover High School can also get college and career advising and financial aid support through Avenues for Success. The Price Philanthropies Foundation funds Avenues for Success as part of a broad effort to support City Heights, one of San Diego’s most diverse neighborhoods. All students at Hoover High School are eligible for free or reduced lunch according to the school.
“Our family has always been very concerned about equity and opportunity for people who come from more challenged backgrounds,” said Robert Price, the foundation’s president. “City Heights presented a great opportunity.”
Osciris Chino is one of the 31 Hoover High School graduates who will attend SDSU in the fall through the program.
“The college application process was really stressful,” she said. “But this program was always there for me.”
She said she plans to study biology and become a veterinarian.
