twenty years of kipp students

spring & summer // 2014
volume 6 // issue 3
twenty years of kipp students
By Vivian Woong, KKC 2011
I asked my sister how old she thought she would
be when she had her first child, and she said
twenty-something. She asked me in return, and I
said seventeen. I was eleven and she was twelve.
Taken aback by my response, she
asked me why, and I didn’t know
how to answer her. As a matter of
fact, I didn’t know what the big deal
was. We had plenty of friends who
were pregnant and dropping out of
school, so why was my answer so
surprising?
While everyone else was working hard for good
grades to go to college, I tried to up my “cool”
game and didn’t care to do well in middle school.
Reality hit me in eighth grade when I applied to
several boarding high schools to escape my
and for the first time ever, I am happy!
Today, KIPP is twenty years old. It started with
one classroom in Texas, and has since impacted
the lives of 50,000 students in 141 schools. I
look back on my twenty years and
see that my life could have gone in a
completely different direction. My life
changed when I walked into a KIPP
classroom eight years ago. I think
back to those years and am reminded
of how much I’ve grown and all of my
achievements. I am proud to be an
alumna.
Today, I am twenty years old. I
And although I was able to change
graduate next year with a degree
in just a short few years as a KIPP
in English from the University of
student, unfortunately there will
San Francisco—the college of my
always be children who imagine
dreams. My original path shifted
themselves raising a family at
when I was forced to go to KIPP in
seventeen, surrounded by poverty
seventh grade. The change wasn’t texas throwback: The very first fifth grade class at KIPP Academy
and high dropout rates. I’m glad
easy or at all pleasant. In exchange in Houston, Texas.
that KIPP is continuing to make a
for where I am today, I suffered great
difference by giving students the
emotional hardships at home. My parents were family (and KIPP) and was admitted into none.
opportunity
to pursue a lifestyle beyond the
At
that
moment,
I
realized
that
no
one
was
going
incredibly strict, and so was my school. I had little
inner
city
status
quo. In the next few years, as
to
get
me
anywhere
except
myself.
That’s
when
room to express myself (especially as a troubled
teenager with many feelings) and grew up with I chose to accept the support that KIPP was I graduate from college, I imagine myself doing
little guidance in life outside of academics. At offering to get me somewhere in life. In the end, great things, and I imagine KIPP will, too, by
KIPP, everyone talked about college, and I had I got what I wanted: I am living away from home inspiring many more young minds. Here’s to
and doing anything and everything I want to do, another twenty years!
absolutely no comprehension of it.
started
from the
bottom,
now we’re 141
schools.
1994
2000
2002
2007
2014
KIPP Academy opens in
Houston, Texas.
KIPP featured on 60 Minutes;
begins national expansion.
First KIPP school opens in
the Bay Area - KIPP Bridge
Charter School.
First KIPP high school opens
in the Bay Area - KIPP King
Collegiate High School.
KIPP turns 20; the first Bay
Area alumni graduates from
college.
inside you’ll find
Sixty days of summer.
PAGE 2
Where is everyone going
to college?
PAGE 3
Volunteer opportunities
for KIPP alumni. PAGE 3
Summertime Madness
Lana Del Rey got it all wrong. Between graduations, internships, summer programs, and getting ready for college, summertime is chock full of events
and opportunities for alumni. So forget summertime sadness - it’s more like madness with everything KTC has going on.
j u n e
Tuesday
Monday
Wednesday
Summer Internships are in full-swing!
Congratulations to all of the alumni
who are interning at companies like
Education Pioneers, Dress for Success,
Teach for America, KIPP Foundation,
Bain & Company, Accenture, GO Public
Schools, SOMOS Mayfair, San Jose
Earthquakes, Matterfab, Homebrew, and
many, many others!
Father’s Day is June 15th!
Thursday
Friday
The class of 2014 graduates from KIPP
King and KIPP San Jose Collegiate! The
Lions walk the stage on Saturday, June 7th
at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley, and the Wolfpack
walks on Thursday, June 12th at the California
Theatre in San Jose.
12th
15th
21st
23rd
30th
j u ly
June 30th is the last day to make a
contribution to your KIPP College
Account and take advantage of the
$250 match! If you’re headed off to
college this year, connect with your
advisor about how to close your
account and receive the money you
saved for college!
Bust out your sunscreen and bro
tanks because summer officially
starts on June 21st! Take advantage
of the time off by meeting with
your KTC advisor to look into fall
fly-in programs, brush up your
resume, or just catch up!
2nd - 3rd
KTC’s College Transition Program will be held on July 2-3rd! 75 KIPP seniors
from around the Bay Area will meet at CSU East Bay to spend the night on
campus, meet other alumni attending their college, and get the information
they need for a successful freshman year of college. Want to sign up?
Register for the CTP here: http://bit.ly/ctp2014regform
29th
4th
It’s Independence Day!
Happy birthday, ‘merica.
The KTC team will be out of the office from July 28-31st, to
attend the KIPP School Summit in Houston, Texas., where
we’ll connect with other KTC teams from across the network
and celebrate the 20th Anniversary of KIPP.
2
7th
It’s Ms. Epstein’s birthday!
Send her an email to check
in and say HBD!
31st
volume 6 // issue 3
w h e r e d o k i p p a lu m n i at t e n d c o l l e g e ?
This fall, the class of 2014 will be joining four other cohorts of KIPP alumni already in college, and for the first time in KTC Bay Area history, there
will be more KIPP alumni in college than in high school. Want to know what that actually looks like? See below.
13%
946
20%
87% in state
total # of alumni in college
80% public
in state v. out of state
private v. public colleges
which colleges have the most alumni on campus?
san jose state university - 80 alumni
chabot - 74 alumni
san francisco state university - 69 alumni
de anza - 54 alumni
city college of sf - 50 alumni
california state university - east bay - 47 alumni
uc riverside - 38 alumni
uc davis - 24 alumni
sonoma state university - 22 alumni
uc merced - 20 alumni
volunteer opportunities
You don’t want to be stuck doing nothing this summer. If you don’t have a summer job, here are some Bay Area organizations where you can volunteer. Plus, it’s great for
college applications and resumes.
opportunity: shanti
project
Sector: Health &
Human Services
Location: San
Francisco, CA
Volunteering means:
Peer support for
people living with AIDS and breast cancer, clerical and
office work
Contact: www.shanti.org / 415-674-4700
spring & summer // 2014
opportunity: emma prusch farm park
Sector: Outdoor/Environment
Location: San Jose, CA
Volunteering means: gardening, helping in the
orchard, feeding animals
Contact: www.pruschfarmpark.org / 408.794.6262
opportunity:
jumpstart
Sector:
Education/
Youth
Development
Location: Oakland and San Francisco, CA
Volunteering means: working 1-1 with elementary
students to help them with reading
Contact: www.jstart.org / 415.536.5867
3
a l u m n i o f k i p p b ay a r e a
Many of you have probably seen the Facebook page and Instagram handle “Humans of New York.”
It showcases all sides and stories of the people living in New York City. Because we believe that our
students also have a unique and individual perspective when it comes to attending college, we’ve
launched a series featuring our alumni of the Bay Area.
Here are a few highlights, but make sure to like our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ktcbayarea)
or follow us on Instagram (@ktcbayarea) to see more.
“What’s the hardest part of college?”
“Focusing on your actual studies.”
- Ciarra, Bridge 2012
“I’m kinda on that journey to a more dynamic
life. That bridge is my ticket.”
- Franca, SF Bay 2013
“What’s your favorite part of studying design?”
“Making sure what isn’t there counts.”
- Ricky, KIPP Summit 2013
about kipp through college
about the newsletter
The Alumni Newsletter is written and prepared by
the KIPP Through College Alumni Advisory Council.
As part of KIPP’s commitment to ensure that
its students climb the mountain to and through
college, KIPP Bay Area Schools continues to
support students after they graduate KIPP middle
and high schools through the KIPP Through
College program.
Alu m ni Adv i sor y Cou nc il Me mb e rs
Parker Harrison, Student Chair // KIPP Bridge Charter School 2014
Alex Ahuatzi // KIPP San Francisco Bay Academy 2014
Aster Mael // KIPP Bridge Charter School2014
Eutika Talaeai // KIPP Bayview Academy 2014
Alfredo Lopez // KIPP Bayview Academy 2015
Alexandra Aguilera // KIPP King Collegiate 2016
Winnie Qian // KIPP Bridge Charter School 2016
want to contribute to the ktc alumni newsletter?
Contact Casey Robertson, KTC Program Manager,
at [email protected].
4
find us online
for more, visit www.kippbayarea.org/ktc
volume 6 // issue 3 // spring & summer // 2014