Administrator

It'll be years before they even graduate from high school, but 54 Fresno middle school students already are planning for college.

They took pen to paper Friday at Terronez Middle School in southeast Fresno and signed college-attendance pledges, part of Fresno Unified School District's kickoff to the "Save Me a Spot in College" campaign -- a statewide effort aimed at steering middle school students toward higher education.

More than 200 students from throughout the school district have signed the pledges in the past two weeks, promising to work hard, take advanced courses and apply for college admission within a year of graduation. They join thousands of middle school students throughout the state making the same pledge.

Before an audience of students and local educators, Fresno Unified Superintendent Michael Hanson talked about the importance of encouraging students to aim for college and the impact higher education can have on a community.

He cited a congressional report last year that showed the San Joaquin Valley's 20th Congressional District -- which includes portions of Fresno and Kern counties, along with Kings County -- ranked last nationally for the well-being of its residents. In addition to poverty and poor health, Hanson said, the district is afflicted with low graduation rates and a lack of education.

"Just 6.5% of adults in our congressional district have a college degree. We simply have got to improve this to lift our region," he said.

He said the well-being of the community "starts and ends with education."

Jessie Ryan, an associate from the Modesto office of The Campaign for College Opportunity, told students that college can open up new doors and new opportunities. "You are the future leaders," she said.

None of this was lost on Joe Zavala, 13, who attends Tioga Middle School. He eagerly signed the one-page pledge along with classmates at the conclusion of the speeches and balloon-bedecked ceremony.

"I think college is good, it can refresh my mind and make me smart," he said.

Joe has a role model close at hand: His older brother is attending Fresno City College -- the first in the family to attend college. Joe said going to college will provide him career options that his parents never had. And, Joe already has a plan: "I want to go to Fresno State and study engineering."

The Early Commitment to College Program, which was signed into law last year, is designed to reach out to students early with information they need about how to achieve their college dreams.

The Governor's Partnership on the San Joaquin Valley adopted the Early Commitment to College Program as a focus in its strategic plan. Eight counties and school districts are part of the partnership. For its part, the state promises to save a spot in college and help with financial aid for students who hold up their end of the bargain.

Hanson told students that the district is committed to helping them meet their goals of higher education.

During the kickoff ceremony, two students were awarded $500 scholarships. Sixth-grader Brittany Lopez Hidalgo and seventh-grader Jonathan Fernandez -- both students at Terronez -- were presented with giant checks from the "Save Me a Spot in College" scholarship program.

Fresno Unified will award a total of $2,100 in scholarships through May. The money comes from corporate donations to the statewide scholarship program.