Northeast Valley Youth Look Upward Bound

Raquel Bolanos knew she was in the right place at the right time when she listened to a recruiter talk about Upward Bound, a free program for low-income, first-generation college-bound high school students.

“The program comes at a good time for ninth-graders,” Raquel said, picking up an application. “We can get better grades and think about college.”

Raquel was among 1,400 Sylmar High School freshmen and sophomores gathered in the school auditorium recently to hear a pitch for the college preparatory program that promised rigorous academics, field trips and a taste of campus life.

Although Upward Bound was established in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty program, organizers said this summer marks the first time it will be offered to high school students in the northeast San Fernando Valley.

Fifty students from Sylmar, San Fernando and Kennedy high schools will be selected to participate in the program at Mission College beginning in June.

To qualify, students must be the first generation in their family to attend college. Also, they must come from low-income families, be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and high school graduates with a demonstrated desire to attend college.

Upward Bound offers two components--the academic year session and the summer session--and students can be in one or both, organizers said.

During the academic year, students take math, English, foreign language and computer science classes two Saturdays a month at Mission College. They also participate in personal enrichment workshops, cultural activities, educational field trips and college tours.

In the five-week summer session, they spend two weeks at Mission College and three weeks living on campus at Cal State Northridge.

CSUN ceased its Upward Bound program in the late 1980s, after federal funding dried up, said university spokesman John Chandler. Since then, the school has provided room and board for several college preparatory programs operated by other institutions.

Valley and Pierce colleges offer similar academic outreach programs for high school students.

In his recruiting presentation, Program Director John Klitsner pointed out the door-opening benefits of an undergraduate degree, but he also made it clear that students would have to make sacrifices.

“If you don’t want to give up your Saturdays, you’re not one of the 50 people we are looking for,” said Klitsner, a straight-talking former football coach. “I want to hear from people who say, ‘They want to help us go to college--for free--tell me more, keep talking.’ ”

To separate those students “who really have a passion to go on to college” from those “who think it’s just an OK idea,” Klitsner asked students to come back to the auditorium at lunch and pick up an application.

About 300 students returned, including sophomores Hilda Madrano and Fernando Nunez.

Hilda, 15, said she planned to apply to avoid a future of physical labor.

“My mother works very hard in a factory,” Hilda said. “If I go to college, I won’t have to work that hard. I can work in an office.”

Fernando, 16, said the program would help him to stay on track to finish school.

“It will be something great for my parents, because no one in my family has graduated from high school or gone to college,” he said.

Tucking the application in her notebook, Raquel said, “People are willing to help us in math, writing, proper Spanish--and to be someone.”