College Panels at Oakland Technical High School, Oakland, California - January 2010

“I learned that as long as you believe you can do it, then you could make it through college.”
- Male, Grade 11

“I liked how they gave us a personal view of college.”
- Female, Grade 11

“I learned that college is very difficult, and that if I plan on surpassing my current education, I need to go and prepare for the diffucult challenges that lie ahead. I thought [the panel session] was very informative, and I liked everything about it.”
- Male, Grade 11

What did I like most? I understood what they were talking about.”
- Male, Grade 11

College Panels at Granada High School, Livermore, California - October 2009

“Better Grads provided a unique and personalized presentation to our school, showing students that there are multiple pathways to attend college and provided testimonials about the variety of programs offered when studying at a university. ”
- William Rasor (teacher; Freshmen-In-Transition Coordinator)

“Allowing students to question the panel gave them a clear insight as to what college is all about.”
- Monica Brickwedel (teacher)

“It brought to the verge of tears by the passion of the BetterGrads presentation.”
- Corrign Willis (teacher)

“BetterGrads’ presentation was like preventing the Hail Mary at the end of a game by by prepping our youth for their tomorrows”
- Brian Poynter (teacher)

“It provided a Marathon’s worth of information”
- Noel Mattern (teacher)

“This panel of articulate college grads provided excellent information in a format that high school students could understand. The diverse nature of the panel, their enthusiasm and use of personal examples kept every student in the audience engaged.”
- Roxann Engel (Academic Guidance Counselor)

“I liked listening to a student’s perspective.”
- Female, Grade 9

“You gave me a lot more options.”
- Female, Grade 9

“I’m speechless … I just loved everything about it.”
- Male, Grade 11

“Excellent presentation! I liked the honest, diverse experiences your panel could share. I wish we had more time.”
- Female, Grade 11

“Panel presenters were very approachable and not intimidating. Very friendly to students asking questions. Good info. I think just opening it up to questions was great. Thank you for coming.”
- Parent of an 11th Grader

“I really liked your enthusiasm and the many answers in different perspectives. I learned a lot: keep an open mind to things, strive for what you want, and have fun. :-) Thank you for all your recommendations … it really helped!”
- Female, Grade 11

Others

“I really enjoyed your presentation. It was delivered very well and was hilarious.”
- Dustin, a senior at Livermore High (CA)

“We were glad we attended. You provided a perspective we have not yet considered.”
- The Lipski Family, Livermore (CA)

“I would love to tell my friends to go to yall’s presentation ‘cause I loved it!”
- Ashleigh, a junior at Milton High School (GA)

“I enjoyed your presentation … what a gift you can give the young ones.”
- Lydia, a parent of a student at Dublin High School (CA)

“I learned a lot. I really did appreciate the fact that it came from someone more our age because I wouldn’t have paid attention if it was anyone else.”
- Cathy, a senior at Livermore High School (CA)

“As a high school career counselor, I have experienced firsthand the negative impact of California’s education budget cuts. I used to be available five days a week for my students. Now, it’s only two days a week. This is not sufficient time to prepare my students for college—let alone share much info on college with them. With hundreds of students under my guidance—and thus, hundreds of unique circumstances—I have been forced to stop my open office hours for the year. Now, I will only meet each student one time, for a single hour, over the course of the year. I am doing everything I can to meet the needs of my students. Amidst these major cuts and reductions in resources, creative and low-cost approaches are desperately needed to make up the difference between what the schools can provide and what the students need. I believe BetterGrads takes a major step towards bridging the gap in college preparation and awareness.”
- Elaina Edwards, Academic Guidance Counselor, Del Valle & Phoenix High Schools

“BetterGrads is a great idea. I remember being a high school senior and having absolutely no clue what I was going to do. It was by a stroke of luck that I ended up at Oxy, and not a day goes by that I am not thankful for such fortune. My brother is 16 right now, and he is going through the same thing. It is hard in Vegas - no one goes anywhere. So your concept really hits home for me. I could see it making that small difference that is sometimes all it takes.”
- Galen Smith, grad student at University of Denver; Occidental College alumni