Latino students from four Westchester high schools ”“ Fox Lane, Ossining, Sleepy Hollow and White Plains ”“ recently gathered with family members at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown to celebrate their success in being accepted to college after working with Latino U College Access.
It”™s a White Plains-based nonprofit that has been helping academically talented, low-income students earn acceptance and scholarships at some of the best colleges in the country, including Harvard, Princeton and Columbia.
“I wasn”™t familiar with the whole application process and I needed help,” said Darwin Arias, a senior at Ossining High School. Arias will be attending Columbia this fall on a full four-year scholarship.
Sabrina Morales, a senior at Fox Lane High School in Bedford, received a partial scholarship to Harvard University. “Without Latino U and my volunteer college coaches, I never would have had the courage to apply to the Ivy League schools,” she said.
Latino U College Access points to statistics documenting its success: 98 percent of the students helped remain on track to graduate, 93 percent are enrolled in four-year universities; 62 percent attend private four-year universities.
High school guidance counselors nominate students to be aided by Latino U College Access. They need to have at least a 3.4 grade point average, have taken advanced placement and honors courses and meet income criteria.
