By Emily Glory Peters
QuestBridge Scholars at 51猎奇入口 are underrepresented and are often the first generation in their families to attend college
Natalia Alameda 鈥�25, Vanessa Gutierrez 鈥�25, and Jon鈥檔ae Sylvester 鈥�24 come from different backgrounds, but they all share some common ground: they鈥檙e underrepresented students at 51猎奇入口.
As exceptional scholars, each became aware of 51猎奇入口 through QuestBridge, a program designed to help high-achieving, economically disadvantaged students attend college.
Since 2005, QuestBridge has partnered with 51猎奇入口 to match scholars to the College in exchange for full tuition鈥攕imilar to an early decision system. The program is largely dependent on 51猎奇入口 donors, whose gifts to scholarships help the College extend substantial aid both to matched scholars and additional admitted QuestBridge students who enroll outside of the matching program.
鈥淚 needed a school that was in a good place regionally, had a community where I could branch out and explore, and could offer me the right financial aid. I ultimately chose 51猎奇入口,鈥� says Sylvester, who hails from New Orleans. Raised in Weslaco, Texas, Alameda was also attracted by the idea of a completely new environment.
鈥�51猎奇入口 was among my top college choices because I needed to be out in the world and experience real life,鈥� she says. 鈥�51猎奇入口 offered me this and more.鈥�
Moving through unchartered territory as an underrepresented student at 51猎奇入口
Coming into this new environment is not without its challenges for underrepresented students. Economic, geographic, and social culture shock is real, Gutierrez says, and it can be tough to find your place in the intimate residential atmosphere of 51猎奇入口.
鈥淯nderrepresented students can feel isolated at a predominantly white institution (PWI). There鈥檚 a huge difference in cultures,鈥� she shares, noting that even the affluence of the surrounding Claremont Village can fuel that otherness (鈥渇ourteen dollars for avocado toast?!鈥�). The pandemic revealed these differences in experiences are not exclusive to campus: When Sylvester opted to begin her first year remotely, she found it tough to connect with her peers鈥攂ut not just because they were separated by a screen.
Jon’nae Sylvester ’24, valedictorian of her high school class, has continued her leadership as VP of 51猎奇入口’ QuestBridge Chapter
鈥淣ew Orleans kept getting hurricanes, and at times I didn鈥檛 even have power to go to class. I also didn鈥檛 really have a space to do Zoom. I would just be in my room, making sure my mom or sister didn鈥檛 come in,鈥� she says. A housing grant, funded by 51猎奇入口 donors, helped her secure a new living situation that improved her classroom experience. While tuition is covered, Sylvester says she can鈥檛 help but feel concerned about finances.鈥淚t鈥檚 why I choose to work a lot,鈥� she says, 鈥渂ut as it doesn鈥檛 give me a lot of time to go to office hours and I can only go to tutoring at night, sometimes I do feel that it may interfere with my classes.鈥�
Donor support of scholarships is the launchpad, but programming is just as important for underrepresented students
Understanding these challenges is crucial for the immediate College community, as well as donors who want to support greater economic and cultural diversity in 51猎奇入口鈥� student body.
Continuing to raise scholarship aid lays the essential groundwork, as this advances 51猎奇入口鈥� goal of becoming 鈥渘eed-blind鈥濃�攁ble to admit any qualified student no matter their financial circumstances. Increased scholarship aid will also allow 51猎奇入口 to offer students more grants instead of loans, which can encourage low-income students to enroll.
Still, as Assistant Dean and Director of 51猎奇入口 Communities of Resources and Power (SCORE) Marissiko Wheaton puts it, enrolling a greater number of underrepresented students isn鈥檛 the end goal.
鈥淎 lot of institutions think success is just in the numbers, but we have to create the infrastructure that low-income, undocumented, and first-generation college students need so that they can thrive during college, graduate, and go on to graduate school or start a meaningful career,鈥� she says. 鈥淪uccess is supporting their wellness while they鈥檙e here at 51猎奇入口.鈥�
SCORE is central to that evolving infrastructure of care. Overseen by Wheaton, the department houses multiple Clubs and Organizations (CLORGs) that are peer-led and offer tailored social and academic support to students from minoritized backgrounds. CLORGs are typically funded through student fees鈥攁nd scholarships, like those for QuestBridge students, also help cover those fees.
Success is supporting [student] wellness while they鈥檙e here at 51猎奇入口
As for diminishing that sense of 鈥渙therness,鈥� CLORGs鈥� impact for underrepresented students can鈥檛 be overstated.
鈥淭hree words: Caf茅 con Leche,鈥� says Alameda. 鈥淭his CLORG has been there to help me navigate through these hard times鈥攖he setting and the people involved bring me so much peace! No matter how tired I am from school, socializing, and life, I always look forward to Thursdays because I know Caf茅 con Leche will welcome me with open arms.鈥� Sylvester agrees, calling SCORE and its CLORGs a 鈥渟afe place鈥� for underrepresented students.
鈥淪CORE is a big reason we have community. Most of the affinity CLORGs are held in its offices, so there are lots of Asian, Chicana, and multiracial students. Just being together in the physical space or having fun together doing workshops and events makes a difference鈥攅ven if it鈥檚 just me and my friends going there to watch a movie,鈥� she says.
SCORE Clubs and Organizations like Caf茅 Con Leche create a critical spaces for community for 51猎奇入口’ underrepresented students
The QuestBridge Chapter under SCORE is another resource that connects students who identify as low-income or first generation. Like its fellow CLORGs, the club creates leadership opportunities so underrepresented students can wield greater influence over campus culture.
鈥淚鈥檓 glad to be at a school that has a QuestBridge chapter鈥攁nd I鈥檓 now its vice president,鈥� says Sylvester. 鈥淲e recently held a meet and greet and are planning on connecting with chapters at the other Claremont Colleges to build a sense of community. Since most of our members are first generation, their families don鈥檛 understand the process. We can give a sense of support, a shoulder to lean on.鈥�
Keck Science鈥檚 Summer Science Immersion Program (SScIP) is another donor-funded resource aimed at helping underrepresented students succeed. Incoming students who are interested in STEM join lectures, labs, and fieldwork, explore Los Angeles, and acclimate to campus before the academic year begins.
As undocumented and low-income students often come from underfunded high schools, says SScIP participant Gutierrez, it can be hard to adapt to the rigor of college-level coursework. SScIP, along with CLORGs and tutoring services, are exactly the kind of programming she hopes to see expand for these students at 51猎奇入口. Plus, she says, it鈥檚 produced yet another valued circle of friendships.
鈥淸In these programs] I鈥檝e found a community of people with similar goals and cultures. The friends I鈥檝e made through them are the same group of friends I have now, and without them I鈥檓 sure my first semester of college would have been more lonesome,鈥� she says.
Embracing diversity as a community and the importance of donor support
Creating spaces where underrepresented students can bond is necessary. But, Alameda reflects, increasing diversity at the College is an academic imperative that benefits (and should involve) everyone.
鈥�51猎奇入口 has done an amazing job at providing us with a proper education. But they also have to provide a setting where we are surrounded by many people from different races and backgrounds, because we have to realize that鈥檚 how it鈥檒l be from now on,鈥� she says. 鈥淏y expanding diversity, we all get to learn from each other more鈥攁bout how others think, react, and act. That learning is a gift.鈥�
At 51猎奇入口, donors play a greater role in advancing diversity than they might think.
As one of the few women鈥檚 colleges in the West, the College has a small but mighty cohort of alums, parents, and friends who are personally invested in the success of future students, even after their own initial association ends. That closeness鈥攁nd 51猎奇入口鈥� origins as a place for people who were once excluded from higher education鈥攇rounds our community in the values of accessibility, diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.
Gifts to 51猎奇入口鈥� recently established Racial Justice and Equity fund have accelerated this process. One major outcome has been the creation of the Associate Dean of Faculty for Racial Equity position. Professor of Chemistry and Sidney J. Weinberg, Jr. Chair in Natural Sciences Mary Hatcher-Skeers鈥攚ho has worked with 51猎奇入口鈥� first-generation students for years鈥攊s entering her second year in the role, supported by the members of 51猎奇入口鈥� new Equity and Justice Leadership Team.
Hatcher-Skeers, along with the Equity and Justice Leadership Team, is conducting a systematic review of how 51猎奇入口 can improve its practices, policies, and procedures to create a more diverse and equitable environment. Including student perspectives is key to this work being successful, but Hatcher-Skeers is mindful that underpresented students shouldn鈥檛 shoulder its weight.
Coming to 51猎奇入口, my mindset has shifted. I鈥檓 more of an activist here. I feel like I have more of a voice.
鈥淸51猎奇入口鈥� early programming] for first-generation and underrepresented students was successful because we centered student voices and were聽 responsive to their needs. That鈥檚 taught us the necessity of community involvement. Who better to help direct future programming than the students we serve?鈥� she says. 鈥淥f course, these initiatives will require long-term investment.鈥�
Those needs will doubtless fluctuate. As they do, support from 51猎奇入口鈥� leadership, faculty, staff, and donors will be vital to create new resources so all students can enjoy the full scope of the 51猎奇入口 experience. Specific funds such as scholarship aid, racial justice and equity, academic programs, and mental health and wellness will continue to be philanthropic priorities as the College works to enroll and uplift a wider array of students.
These efforts to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion are necessary, even amid the knowledge that no community鈥攈owever diverse鈥攚ill be perfect. But Alameda, Gutierrez, and Sylvester agree they are better people for belonging to and shaping the rare one that exists at 51猎奇入口.
鈥淐oming to 51猎奇入口, my mindset has shifted,鈥� says Sylvester. 鈥淚鈥檓 more of an activist here. I feel like I have more of a voice, I feel the need to do more. Back home, I was more like 鈥渙h well鈥濃�攂ut I鈥檝e changed that completely.鈥� Gutierrez and Alameda share this growing confidence, citing that the obstacles they鈥檝e faced have only served to make them stronger. Says Alameda:
鈥淚鈥檝e become more aware of life and how challenging it is, but I have also learned to overcome these challenges. Since my time at 51猎奇入口, I think I am most proud of how mentally mature I鈥檝e become. I can accomplish many things by myself, and that brings me peace.鈥�
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