Maydeen Merino
Staff Writer
The REACH program at the University of La Verne will continue to help underserved high school students attend college.
The program will focus on students who are interested in majoring in business.
Yeri Cho, assistant professor of management, spoke about the program during her faculty lecture Tuesday.
Cho said examples of the underserved students they will mentor include minority groups and students whose parents did not attend college.
Cho said while the program is run by administration and staff on campus, it focuses on providing information about the college process and guiding high school students into any college, not just ULV.
REACH will allow these students to take classes at La Verne in order to get a preview of the college experience.
Cho said REACH conducted a survey that revealed 67 percent of their students were female, 80 percent of the students’ parents did not attend college and 71 percent of the students are Latinx.
“I definitely did not have a program like this in high school, I think it is really important especially for undeserving communities,” junior and art major Madelyn Jane Duran said. “I think every high school should have a program like this and it seems like a really promising program and it is affecting a handful of students.”
The program is offered at seven different school district and requires students to go through an application process to be accepted into the REACH program, Cho said.
Cho added that out of 350 yearly applicants only 50-60 are accepted.
“I liked how they are focused on specific students for the program instead of just taking any student,” sophomore history major Hannah Chadwick said.
The REACH curriculum focuses on business education, field trips, college administration, FAFSA, SATs and business plans.
“The curriculum for this REACH program is very unique compared to other outreach programs,” Cho said.
Cho added REACH gives students an idea of what to expect from college level courses.
“I did not know this program was happening here at the University, but I think it’s really awesome that they choose business because you can do a lot with a business major,” sophomore business administration major Karlee Fink said.
Cho said providing students with exposure to college campuses allowed them the opportunity to envision their own success.
University resources can be utilized to practice social responsibility,” Cho said.
“Universities, just as citizens to society, have social responsibility.”
Cho said reaching out to undeserved students as part of that social responsibility increases their chance of success.
Maydeen Merino can be reached at maydeen.merino@laverne.edu.
