The Answer - A blog about Education, Preparation, and Commitment.

The 100 Percent Promise: US News & World Report

September 02, 2010 by Jeremy Jones

U.S. News & World Report's most popular issue, "Ranking Best Colleges," includes a two-page feature on YES Prep Public Schools and our college-bound culture: "The 100 Percent Promise." The magazine is on newsstands now, so be sure to pick up a copy to read more about our students, staff and mission to prepare 10,000 college ready students in Houston!

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Excerpts from The "100 Percent Promise"

"In the past 10 years, 100 percent of [YES Prep's] graduates have been accepted to four-year colleges. Marquez was not about to break that track record. 'I'm going to college,' says the freshman at Austin College in Sherman, Texas. 'A lot of my other friends can't say that.'

"The success rate would be remarkable for any public high school, but the composition of YES's student body makes the achievement even more extraordinary. More than 80 percent of students at YES Prep schools are from economically disadvantaged households, 90 percent will be the first in their families to attend college, and 95 are Hispanic or African-American. By traditional expectations, these are the students least likely to succeed in the classroom, much less enroll in highly selective universities such as Stanford, Yale and Wake Forest."

"...Through a rigorous academic course load and a hands-on approach to the college admissions process, YES Prep--which operates eight campuses in the Houston area--has proved it possible for nontraditional students to march off to the nation's elite college campuses."

"Getting ready for college starts early at YES Prep. Sixth-graders (the schools include grades 6 through 12) are encouraged to start thinking about and identifying with colleges. For example each homeroom is named after the alma mater of its assigned teacher. 'Rather than 6A or 6B, it's Vanderbilt or George Washington [University],' says Donald Kamentz, YES's senior director of college initiatives."

"There is one course particular to YES Prep campuses that is perhaps most responsible for the schools' success with admissions offices across the nation. During their junior and senior years, every student is required to take a course with one of the school's college counselors. Teens at other high schools, public and private, are fortunate if they can meet with their college counselors for a few hours over the course of the semester. At YES, they're face-to-face with a counselor for an hour each day for two years."

"All of this college preparation has led to clear success for YES schools and their alumni (573 and counting). Not only do 100 percent enroll in college, but 80 percent have either earned a degree or are still working toward it, far about the national average of about 50 percent."

"Of course, success breeds demand. More than 4,000 students are on the YES Prep wait list. Currently, 4,200 students are admitted by lottery... The goal is to increase enrollment to 10,000 by 2020."

"'YES is like a community,' (student) Aguirre says. 'It's not even about being in a classroom and them teaching you algebra. They're teaching you life lessons."

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