Written By Robin Shepherd

When the time comes for our kids to start making their own decisions about getting an education and building a future , they need a roadmap . I know what you ’ re thinking . . . try telling that to a teenager ! One local organization is doing just that , with great results .

First year program participants ( l-r ): Edgar Gonzalez , Esperanza Gonzalez , Isidro Gonzalez , Jennifer Gonzalez , Freda Ross , Claudia Ross , Mario Banuelos , Uriel “ Cookie ” Alvarez , Irene Macias-Morris , Irisbel Gonzalez , Former Morgan Hill Mayor Dennis Kennedy , George Flores , Luis Gonzalez , Francesco Justo .

George Flores was and still is a Science teacher at Britton Middle School . Claudia Rossi was on the Morgan Hill Unified School District ( MHUSD ) Board of Education in 2010 , and she ’ s currently on the Santa Clara County Board of Education . Mario Banuelos is a founding board member of the Morgan Hill Community Foundation ( MHCF ). All three are passionate advocates of this program .

According to George , “ We attended a countywide conference , ALAS ( Achieving Latinx Advancement and Success ), at San José State University , and it got me thinking that we could do our own conference . We could hold workshops to help students and their parents come up with a long-term roadmap that included the steps they needed to take and a timeline .” Claudia and Mario agreed .

“ Project Roadmap serves kids from middle school through high school ,” George explained . “ We work with kids who think they ’ re not college material and kids who dream of going to the big-name schools but have little idea what it takes to get there .

“ From the beginning , we ’ ve worked closely with district counselors and teachers . Our schools disseminate the necessary information related to college planning , but for some families it can be overwhelming and additional guidance is required along the way . For Spanishspeaking parents we provide information in their native language so they can be aware and supportive of their students ’ goals and actions .

“ Our students need to know the entrance requirements for different colleges , when to enroll in A-G classes , how many AP classes to take and what defines a competitive GPA score . Some families don ’ t realize they ’ re eligible for financial aid or how to apply for it . They need to know when the SAT must be taken and how students can prepare for it . Failure to take certain steps at the right time means missed opportunities .

“ It ’ s a reality check for the kids ,” George said , adding , “ There ’ s no room for pipedreams !”

Claudia Rossi recalled the first meeting of Project Roadmap : “ We got students and their parents together and said , ‘ We want you to be able to follow the best possible path to a college education , which will open doors of opportunity . There ’ s a roadmap for success for each of you .’”

“ We met with the families on weekends and asked what their concerns were and how we could help ,” Claudia added . “ When a freshman student said he felt totally lost in class , we asked if a workshop on effective note-taking would help . He said yes , so we made it happen , and many students attended . When the kids said they needed help with SAT test preparation , we put together a new workshop . At one meeting a parent asked ‘ What can we do to help our kids get scholarships ?’ We set up a workshop for that too .”

As Mario Banuelos described it , “ We ’ re just facilitators . The kids learn to drive the process .” Mario not only committed his time to help move the project forward , but he also asked the MHCF board to consider funding support for Project Roadmap . “ We invite school administrators , teachers and professionals from business , law and other fields to lead workshops ,” Mario said , “ Many are first-generation college grads who ’ ve overcome obstacles

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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2017 gmhtoday . com