They’ve all been there. Now they’re showing how it’s done.
Graduates from 51 city high schools who now attend local colleges will return to their old schools starting in April to help current seniors realize their own dreams, city Education Department officials said Tuesday.
The $665,000 expansion of the city’s existing College Bridge project, which sends grads back to serve as college counselors at their old schools, will more than double the size of the program.
Mayor de Blasio said the project will help students who have already been accepted to college make the final leap to enrollment.
“When our students do the hard work of graduating from high school and applying to college, it’s our duty to ensure there aren’t road blocks,” de Blasio said.
“That’s exactly what this program is about,” he added.
As many as 7,500 students will participate in College Bridge under the upcoming expansion, city education officials said. The program now operates in 23 high schools.
The college-going alums who serve as coaches will help seniors apply for financial aid, take placement tests and attend orientation, among other things.
Queens High School for Information, Research and Technology Principal Carl Manalo said his school would bring back a grad from the Class of 2015 who’s now in college to counsel students in the Class of 2017 this spring.
Manalo, whose school is located in Far Rockaway, said current students will appreciate having a former student come back to serve as a college coach.
“It’s someone who’s been in their shoes and has already gone through the process,” he said. “It’s someone they can relate to.”
