Our Impact

• Forty FCE alumni have graduated from college, and eight of these college graduates have completed or are beginning graduate study in education, journalism, law, psychology, and social work.

• Two alumni are employed at FCE and serve as important role models for our current high school and college students.

• This past year, one of our earliest graduates became the first FCE alumnus to serve on the FCE Board of Directors, and two others serve as college coaches for FCE high school students.

• In November 2008, FCE alumna, Laura Martinez, at age 24, was the youngest person and first Latina to be elected to the East Palo Alto City Council.

Our Students

		Anabell Cervantes FCE Class of 2008, Santa Clara University “I know many Hispanic students like me who could be taking the advanced classes I took in high school, yet because they go to a different school, don’t have parents who can fight for them, or don’t belong to an organization like FCE, they don’t get the same opportunities I do. Society has subtly pounded into our heads that we aren’t smart enough or capable enough to be at the top. Thanks to my parents and to FCE, I am the first person in my family to go to college. I will not be the last.”
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		Joel Cruz FCE Class of 2005, San Francisco State University “My family and I immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico when I was eight. I am the first person in my family to go to college. FCE taught me to be more aggressive about my future. Since joining FCE, I have become more independent and I have grown both academically and personally. I thank FCE for all their help and support and for showing me the path not only to a college education but to college graduation.”
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		Charles Edwards FCE Class of 1999, M.s.W., California State University, Hayward “In December of 2003, I graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in Liberal Studies. I decided to return to East Palo Alto…to give back to FCE, the organization that has given so much to me over the years! I worked for two years at FCE as a Program Assistant and now I am a volunteer College Coach. I am happy to be supporting my community and the younger FCE students with their college endeavors.”
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		Bennie Mackey FCE Class of 1999, Santa Clara University Law School “Being one of very few Black, male, single-parent household students bused from East Palo Alto to school in Palo Alto certainly gave me my share of issues. Even with my positions on student council and other leadership activities, I did not always feel accepted. FCE opened my eyes to a whole world of colleges that I knew nothing about. While on a college tour with FCE, I visited Pitzer College in Claremont, California, and immediately loved it. I have since graduated from Pitzer and am proud to have recently graduated from Santa Clara University Law School. I owe all of these successes to my mother and to FCE.”
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		Drizella Moreno FCE Class of 2006, University of San Francisco “All my life I have felt as if my people, the people raised in the ‘ghetto’, have been judged too quickly. Society assumes that we will join gangs, deal drugs, get pregnant, or end up in jail. I’m tired of having to be part of this stereotype. I want to break through these stereotypes and celebrate my community of East Palo Alto…Before I joined FCE, I felt lost and scared of what steps it would take to graduate from high school and undertake the arduous process of applying to college…Thanks to FCE’s amazing staff, I have learned that I can only achieve as much as I let myself achieve; I must have high expectations in order to reach my goals…I will be the first person in my entire extended family to attend a four-year college; this has always been one of my family’s dreams. I want to attend college not just to better my future, but also to set an example for my younger siblings, cousins and community…”
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		Carmen Ochoa FCE Class of 2003, University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine "Many people have played a major role in helping me succeed, but no one has helped me more than FCE. Foundation for a College Education drilled into my head the importance of a college education. I never felt alone and I knew I could always turn to them if I encountered any obstacles. I will make a difference in this world and I owe that to my family and to FCE."
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		Whitney Stewart FCE Class of 2005, University of Puget Sound "FCE helped me discover that with effort come options. I am grateful that FCE pushed me to truly achieve my full potential. I know that without the encouragement and support I received from FCE staff, I would not have applied to some of the more selective colleges and I wouldn't now be going to the college of my dreams!"
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		Kimberly Trujillo Young FCE Class of 1999, Stanford University School of Education “I was one of 60 students annually admitted to the Tinsley Program, a court-ordered desegregation program, which meant that I was bused every day from East Palo Alto to Palo Alto to attend school. The educational opportunities for the students of East Palo Alto are promising; however, the constant crossing of social and physical barriers is daunting. My goal of education after high school was at first intimidating because I was the first person in my family to pursue higher education. To ease this transition, I chose to attend community college before transferring to the University of California, Berkeley. I recently earned a Master's degree in Education at Stanford. I believe that education is the purest means of social justice and the most powerful means of social change. It is each of our responsibility to correct the glaring inequities that still exist in education today.”
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