TUCSON, Ariz.— Aida Garcia-Iniguez-Madero’s fifth-graders learned last week that planning for college now is as important as learning fractions and proper grammar.
As part of an Educational Enrichment Foundation program, the class of 26 boys and girls will receive continuous guidance throughout their school years and, if they follow through, financial help for college as well.
The idea behind the program, called Focus on the Future Scholars, is to envelop each child in a “culture of college expectation,” said Lissa Gibbs, executive director of the Tucson-based foundation.
The endowments were awarded to this fifth-grade class at Roskruge Bilingual Magnet Middle & Elementary School for several reasons, she said, including the school’s proximity to the University of Arizona and Tucson Magnet High School.
Gibbs said $750 has been invested for each child, an amount she hopes will double by the time the children finish high school. The funds will be available only after they complete high school and enroll in college.
If a child does not complete high school, the college fund will be divided among those who do finish. Students have eight years, until 2019, to complete high school.
Roskruge principal Jose Olivas said fewer than half the students in the class have a parent who attended college.
