http://firstgenerationfilm.com Mon, 03 May 2010 18:31:19 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en America’s Promise Alliance and AT&T are looking for the energy, enthusiasm, creativity and commitment to help make this country a Grad Nation through the My Idea grants program. "My Idea" will empower young people to examine the high school dropout crisis and take action to help more of their peers to ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2010/05/make-a-difference-in-the-hs-dropout-crisis/ Two weeks ago we held our Los Angeles Benefit & Silent Auction at Wolfgang Puck's Spectra at the Pacific Design Center, and the evening was a huge success thanks to our many volunteers and supporters! The evening was emceed by our dear friend Kelly Rockwell, and the guest speaker, Crenshaw High ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2010/04/los-angeles-benefit-silent-auction/ I've long been an advocate of encouraging academically promising high school students to attend a 4-yr institution after graduating from high school.  In my experience, the chances of those students completing a 4-yr degree are higher than if they had first enrolled in a 2-yr program. But it's not just my ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/11/the-false-hope-of-transferring/ In the pursuit of increasing college access for low-income students a groundbreaking study from researchers at Harvard Graduate School of Education, Stanford University School of Education, the University of Toronto, and the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that simplifying the financial aid process would result in more low-income students ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/10/simplified-fin-aid-improves-college-access/ The New York Times recently featured two pieces highlighting colleges and universities committed to addressing the needs of first generation college students. "As thousands of low-income, first-generation freshmen flock to campus in the next two months, many, despite their intelligence and optimism, will arrive only to be gone in an academic ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/07/first-gen-friendly-schools/ I find the story of Khadijah Williams absolutely inspiring.  This young woman spent most of her life living on the streets, attending 12 schools in 12 years, and doing all she could to get good grades and finish her education.  This year she was accepted to Harvard where she'll be ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/06/homeless-to-harvard/ California students and educators are up in arms about our state's educational crisis and the recently proposed cuts by the Governor, and we all have opinions about what should and shouldn't be done to untangle the mess in which we've found ourselves. Aurora Ponce, senior class president with a nearly perfect ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/06/ca-valedictorian-barred-from-giving-graduation-speech/ Gov. Schwarzenegger's latest budget cut proposal for California includes terminating all new Cal Grants and taking $750 million for the UC and Cal State systems.  This is devasting news for low-income and first generation students trying to make it to college. Here's a summary of how the governor would cut $5.5 ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/05/cal-grants-in-jeopardy/ Among the flood of tentative pink slips that were mailed to educators this spring were layoff notices for about 2,500 counselors – about 25 percent of the total, according to figures from the California Association of School Counselors. Yikes! In 2006 the average counselor's caseload in California public schools was reduced from ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/05/more-students-less-counselors/ It seems everyone has a different opinion on how to solve the achievement gap, but after reading David Brooks' Op-Ed piece in The New York Times I'm convinced that Geoffrey Canada and his Harlem Children's Zone are onto something. You can read the full article here, and, of course, I'd ... http://firstgenerationfilm.com/index.php/2009/05/unprecedented-results-in-the-harlem-childrens-zone/