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My parents would not have known how to schedule a tour, saysMs. Guarini, whose parents immigrated from Denmark and Guatemala . First Graduate planned it all out for us and said, 'Show uphere ready to learn, with your walking shoes. Founded in 2002, First Graduate prepares students academically forcollege and helps their families navigate the admissions andfinancial-aid process. The program currently works with 230students, from the end of sixth grade to high school and intocollege. QUIZ : Student loans and college finance: Take our quiz! Four in five of the students who started in First Graduate havestuck with it through high school, and all those who completedsenior year have gone on to college. As of this spring, 14 studentsin the program will have finished college. The First Graduate program is intense. Students must participate in300 annual hours of academic instruction and tutoring. Being first in your family to attend college is a huge challengeand a huge accomplishment, says Thomas Ahn, head of the SanFrancisco group. We look for kids who need our services but alsohave the capacity to take advantage of it and do the extra work. The extra academic work, along with family support and an earlystart, leads to success. Mr. Ahn, who, like half of theorganization s employees, was also the first in his family toattend college. First Graduate links each student with a staff member whose role isto be a college and career coach. The staff member helps thestudent choose classes, plan summer enrichment activities, andcraft personal essays for applications. After the student hasentered college, the coach remains involved by checking in eachmonth. The group also gives each student an annual scholarship of$1,000. While the only prerequisite is that students in the program wouldbecome the first in their families to attend college, 63 percent ofparticipants are from immigrant families, and the average familyincome of participants is $26,000, says Mr. Ahn. Foundations and individuals each provide 40 percent of the group s$1.6-million budget; the rest comes from corporations and the citygovernment. The group hopes to expand to 1,000 students in San Francisco in thenext five years. Interest is already high: Last year 150middle-school students applied for 40 slots in next year sprogram. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Bath Fizzer , Cracked Heel Cream, and more. For more , please visit Liquid Hand Wash Soap today!
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