USC SCholars Set a Series of Firsts
"Everybody has a story," said Evelyn Larios, a student who transferred from Los Angeles Community College (LACC) to USC.
At a very young age, Larios was a victim of a sexual abuse.
"I was at a time in my life when I was really low," she said. But with the help of her family and friends, Larios continues to recover. She attributes part of that recovery to USC.
"Instead of going through that narrow road and being a statistic, USC is the positive way I have to go," she explained.
Larios is part of this year's USC SCholars Program, a grant-funded initiative created to increase the number of first-generation and low-income students transferring from community colleges to selective research universities in California.
Along with the rest of this year's incoming SCholars class, Larios is defying statistics and breaking new ground. The 23 students set a series of firsts for the program, including three acceptances to the USC School of Cinematic Arts and another three to the USC Viterbi School of Engineering.
Founded in 2006 with support from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, USC is one of two California universities partnering with three neighboring community colleges — Los Angeles Community College (LACC), Los Angeles Trade-Technical College (LATTC) and East Los Angeles College (ELAC) — and working with students to help them transfer to a school in the University of California system, the California State Institute of Technology, Stanford University or USC.
"Our goal is not exclusively to have these students come to USC," said Kenechukwu (K.C.) Mmeje, director of the USC SCholars Program. "If they come to USC, great – we’ll welcome them with open arms. If they go to Berkeley or UCLA, we’ll consider that a win as well."
The USC SCholars Program has three phases.
The initial phase is working with its community college partners to identify students with the potential to transfer to research institutions. The program provides workshops for about 100 such students on topics such as applying to different schools and securing financial aid.
For the students who apply and are accepted to USC, the second phase consists of a support system to help them succeed at the university. The program does this through a weeklong orientation, group activities and constant advisement and encouragement.
The third phase is working with students as they prepare to graduate and start searching for a job or pursuing graduate education.
Compared to previous years, this year's students are more non-traditional, according to Mmeje, in that some are parents and many are older.
One of these is James Trent, a 40-year-old transfer student from LACC who was accepted to the School of Cinematic Arts.
"Most go to college and then do life," said Trent. "I did life and now I'm going to college."
Trent was raised in southern Georgia and joined the Navy at 17 after graduating from high school. After his service in the Navy, he started a computer business but realized what truly made him happy was film.
Trent, who never thought going to a four-year school was an option, credits the USC SCholars Program with helping make his dream come true.
"When I found out about this program, I realized it could help me transfer to a research or higher level school that would normally not be attainable for someone like me," he said.
Trent plans to apply to the Peter Stark Producing Program, a graduate program in the USC School of Cinematic Arts, when he graduates.
Another USC SCholar, David Perera, is a 21-year-old single father who transferred from ELAC and is now majoring in civil engineering. In high school, he often got in trouble, and during his first year at ELAC, he did not put much effort into his studies.
"I had no direction in my life at the time," he said. "It wasn't until I had my daughter that I realized I needed to get my act together."
Perera said he came to USC thinking he was going to be alone but found that the SCholars Program fosters a community. "You can always go there and have someone to talk to and help you out," he said.
Larios, a sociology major who plans to pursue a doctorate, agrees.
"Once you get involved, you realize it's like a family," she said. "As a family, you stick together. Times are tough, but they're there to help."