Cerritos College News Releases -- March2008

NORWALK, Calif. – March 24, 2008 – Cerritos College announced today that its Project HOPE (Health Opportunities and Pipeline to Education) program was awarded a $144,000 grant by College Access Foundation of California.

“This scholarship grant will help our pre-health students with financial need who are making the crucial transition from community college to a four-year university,” said Graciela Vasquez, Director of Project HOPE. “We are thrilled that College Access Foundation is helping us support these talented, deserving and dedicated students.”

“We are delighted to support Project HOPE in providing an incentive for its students to transfer to a four-year school,” says Caroline Boitano, President of College Access Foundation, “a step that vastly improves the success rate of students of color in pursuit of their educational and career goals.”

Funding from the College Access Foundation of California addresses the need to provide financial support and ensure the academic success of low-income, underrepresented students headed into the health professions. The two-year award will be used to expand Project HOPE’s scholarship program, allowing it to reach more students and providing multi-year scholarships to ensure the completion of their bachelor’s degrees.

Project HOPE’s Transfer Student Scholarship for $5,000 is renewable and designed for transfer students who have already been accepted to a four-year school. The Promising Student Scholarship for $500-$1000 is available to transfer-track students that have completed more than 15 transferrable units.

“Project HOPE is not a ‘false hope,’ it is a hope fulfilled,” says Jeff Bradbury, a Cerritos College chemistry professor. “So many of our former students have gone on to excel at major universities and realize their dreams. What is great about these students is that they want to give back to their community. I am thrilled that this can continue and am honored to be part of it.”

College Access Foundation of California, the largest grantmaking organization of its kind in the state, helps California students who have financial need attend college. The Foundation makes grants to community-based college advising and academic support programs, which use the funds to provide college scholarships to students they serve. For more information on College Access Foundation and its grantees, visit www.collegeaccessfoundation.org or call (415) 287-1800.

Project HOPE is dedicated to increasing the number of Latinos and other underrepresented groups entering, matriculating, and completing health careers. The project aims to create an academic pipeline facilitating the success of minority students in this competitive field. Program activities include: student services geared toward health careers; teaching strategies and courses that increase retention and success of Latino students and other minorities; organized workshops, conferences and research opportunities; community service venues; and peer and professional mentoring. For more information about Project Hope, visit www.cerritos.edu/hope.

Cerritos College serves as a comprehensive community college for southeastern Los Angeles County. Communities within the college’s district include Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, La Mirada, Norwalk, and portions of Bell Gardens, Lakewood, Long Beach, Santa Fe Springs and South Gate. Cerritos College offers degrees and certificates in more than 200 areas of study in nine divisions. Annually, more than 1,200 students successfully complete their course of studies, and enrollment currently nears 20,000 students. Visit Cerritos College online at www.cerritos.edu.

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Cerritos College

Releases 2008