Students encourage kids to go to college

By Katie Grivna / Senior Staff Writer –

Students from several UNT organizations are working to educate bilingual third grade students about college.

The students volunteer as pen pals to students at Dolores Huerta Elementary School in Fort Worth as part of the Discover College Life project.

“We want to better our community, and I think this program can really do that,” said Stephanie Cisneros, an interdisciplinary studies senior and pen pal for the program.

Jesus Ramirez attempts to answer Andrea Nevarez’s question regarding the UNT pen pal letters. (Photos by Martiña Trevino / Photographer)

In the program, third graders are paired with a UNT student pen pal to write letters back and forth discussing college and potential careers.

The pen pal serves as a role model for the children, which is important, Cisneros said.

“I think that’s something that young kids need nowadays. They need someone to show them and push them … so they could actually go to college,” Cisneros said.

Ashley Cervantes (left) and Rosa Maria Villanueva practice “choral reading” with the letters from their UNT pen pals. All the students in the class read aloud simultaneously to improve their language skills. (Photos by Martiña Trevino / Photographer)

She said her father played an important role in her childhood as her role model.

He never made it to the sixth grade, Cisneros said, but he showed her that working could get you somewhere.

Eddie Arellano, a bilingual teacher at Dolores Huerta Elementary School and UNT alumnus, started the project 20 years ago to educate the children about college and how to get there.

After graduating from UNT, Arellano worked with the Association for Latin American Students to find students to write to the third graders.

He said he reached out to Hispanic organizations so the children can correspond with and learn from someone they can relate to.

The association became inactive this year, which posed a problem for Arellano.

In the past, the pen pals began writing in the fall. However, this year, the children just received their first letters because it took him a while to find people from organizations to participate.

A total of 21 UNT students from Students for a Future Without Poverty, the League of United Latin American Citizens, the Bilingual Education Student Organization, the United Student Movement, Fuego and the Hispanic Business Students Association participated in the project.

Arellano said he admires the students he found to participate.

“When I see them, I see myself 20 years ago,” he said. “Not only are they setting a career, they’re serving as role models and they’re taking the time to educate a child about college life.”

The project works well with the curriculum laid out by the Fort Worth Independent School District because it teaches the students about revising and editing as well as about social studies and research, he said.

Johanna Padron (left), Arisve Luna and Joshua Dorantes, write their responses to their UNT pen pals, after completing their reading and comprehension practice. (Photos by Martiña Trevino / Photographer)

The third graders will have to complete a research project about careers and degrees they are interested in with the help of their pen pal, Arellano said.

Arellano said he hopes the Discover College Life project encourages local teachers to create similar projects for their classes, he said.

On April 19, the third graders will take a field trip to UNT and meet their pen pals for the first time.

Roxanne Meza, an entrepreneurship senior, is participating in the project for her fourth year and hopes to teach her pen pal how to salsa dance when they meet because of their shared interest in dance and music.

“I fell in love with the kids,” she said.

One of the best things about the project is the memories it brings back of her own childhood as a bilingual student, Meza said.

“I think it’s a great opportunity to show them what college is about,” she said.

For more information about the Discover College Life project, contact coordinator Eddie Arellano at eddie.arellano@fwisd.org.