College and Career Readiness at the High School of Commerce

By Dianna Tejada

Edited By Lauren Quirici

My project is a partnership with the High School of Commerce (HSC) in Springfield, Massachusetts, which I created on my own.  As a 2011 graduate of the high school, my experiences there helped me with its creation.  Initially the project was called “The College Access Workshop Series,” but after discussions with the staff that I work with, it was changed to “College and Career Readiness.” 

My role is to be a co-facilitator in the College and Career Readiness course at the HSC.  I will be available to speak about certain relevant topics, such as being a student who attends an institution that does not require standardized testing, and how can I use my experience to help the youth in the course. I am also responsible for creating a full-day event for the community partner wherein students come to Mount Holyoke and attend workshops, mock classes, practice interviews and a campus tour.

My goals in the beginning of the semester were as simple as just getting this program running.  I had been involved last semester with a different community project, so I had to begin from scratch with this partnership. I plan on sticking with the HSC for the full school year (or longer) in order to ensure not only that the HSC attains a 100% college acceptance rate, but that the youth are doing what makes them happy at the end of it all.

It has been a huge adjustment having to change my entire fellowship after I was already established at a different one, but everything with HSC has been going much more smoothly than I ever would have imagined. It was a little difficult getting into the school to begin the partnership from the beginning, but after the community partners realized that my commitment to change was real, they warmed up to the idea that “an outsider” (due to affiliation) would be coming in to help them.

Initially, my fellowship was supposed to involve me creating a curriculum and facilitating workshops on college access for the youth. The workshops would have covered everything from pinpointing what kind of higher educational institution fits an individual’s needs most to figuring out what narrative would be best to represent each student in his or her college essay. After meeting with the community partners, I came to find out that they had already created a course which covers these topics.  This meant that I would have to open my mind to the possibility of working on my project during school and not after school as I had initially planned.

Being aware that I am there to serve them, I decided to go in with my mind open to all of the possibilities that could come out of my proposal. Now, I am working together with HSC staff to figure out what the needs of the students are. We want to find out whether I would be of more help in the classroom, or if I’d be better as a mentor in a more intimate setting, like an after-school program.

I am always frustrated that I don’t have enough time in my schedule to do it all. I would love to spend full days at the HSC and get to know every senior, but being a full-time student means that unfortunately, it’s just not possible.

 
I do love that this partnership allows me to go back to my foundation and help make it stronger for those who will follow me in working with the HSC. It is an amazing experience and and opportunity, and I am able to watch myself grow through the change I am able to help implement at HSC.