Going to college is a scary thing. Leaving home and meeting new people can be uncomfortable. So, to understand how our students are feeling, the CV staff decided to do something that made us step outside our comfort zone. We performed our rendition of Iyaz's hit "Replay" during CV's graduation. Check it out here.

CV is proud to say that 70 high school seniors graduated from CV and nine college students have officially received their bachelor degrees. Our high school graduates are on their way to exciting adventures at various institutions of higher education. We are proud of all their hard work and accomplishments.

Many thanks to all the volunteers, friends, families, and students who helped make CV's 2010 graduation a success.

Check out pictures from the graduation.

As May 1st came and left, CV high school students have made important decisions on where to enroll in the fall. Check out which schools our students are heading off to.

Gloria Aboh - University of Rhode Island
Pamela Acosta - Salem College
Pauline Adhiambo - Union College
Michael Almonte - Rhode Island College
Oluwaseun Animashaun - Harvard University
Lisbeth Avalos - Rhode Island College
Christina Ayrassian - University of Rhode Island
Daryl Banks - Community College of Rhode Island
Emely Barroso - Hampshire College
Erik Bou - Bates College
Marie Brown - Community College of Rhode Island
Enmy Cabrera - Guilford College
Sophie Candelaria - Guilford College
Darren Canonico - Community College of Rhode Island
Emanuel Cantor - Philadelphia University
Angeline Capehart - University of Rhode Island
Claribel Codero - University of Rhode Island
Isabel De La Cruz - University of Rhode Island
Sorangel Espinal - University of Rhode Island
Rachely Fondeur - University of Rhode Island
Yanil Garcia - University of Rhode Island
Maritza Gomez - University of Rochester
Trey Goncalves - University of Rhode Island
Jeannette Guerrero - University of Rhode Island
Kimchua Heng - University of Rochester
Clyde Hilliard - Rhode Island College
Dekontee Koliyah - University of Rhode Island
Jaretta Konneh - Mount Holyoke College
Edwin Leonardo - Community College of Rhode Island
Petri Lopez - Providence College
Felix Manon - Brandeis University
Andy Montan - Rhode Island College
Nephtali Navarro - Community College of Rhode Island
Monephia Nembhard - University of Rhode Island
Berel Northecide - Rhode Island College
Oluseyi Olufowobi - University of Rhode Island
Opeyemi Onamiye - University of Rhode Island
Michael Ortega - University of Rhode Island
Luis Ortiz - McDaniel College
Paul Oung - Community College of Rhode Island
Masha Paul - McDaniel College
Genesy Peguero - University of Rhode Island
Josel Perez - Community College of Rhode Island
Diana Polanco - Union College
Stephanie Princival - Community College of Rhode Island
Christina Richardson - College of the Holy Cross
Samdelia Roberts - University of Rhode Island
Dario Rodriguez - University of Rhode Island
Henry Rodriguez - University of Rhode Island
Joshua Rodriguez - Guilford College
Ricky Rodriguez - Community College of Rhode Island
Brenda Rosario - College of the Holy Cross
Jessica Ruiz - Community College of Rhode Island
Jasowolu Saygbe - University of Rhode Island
Covith Sen - Community College of Rhode Island
Gerwin Sena - University of Rhode Island
Mindy Souvannalay - Guilford College
Jermaine Stephens - University of Rhode Island
Monay Threats-McNeil - McDaniel College
Channa Uy - Rhode Island College
Kirby Vasquez - Smith College
Emmanuel Ventura-Urena - Bentley University
Josmonaly Vinas - Rhode Island College

Are you serious about a college degree? College Visions can help you get there. We're looking for students who:

• Are entering 12th grade.
• Attend a Providence-area public high school.

You also have to meet the following criteria:

• Your parents/guardians do not have Bachelors Degrees (4-year college degrees).
• You qualify for free or reduced lunch.

If you are interested, download the application here.
2011 CV Application.pdf

The completed application is due Friday, May 28th.

Our annual graduation ceremony is one of CV's biggest events of the year and we're always looking for help to make it happen! Volunteers can help:

 

• Set up and clean up Beneficent Church before and after the event.
• Shop for supplies before the event.
• Donate food or refreshments.
• Assemble graduation gifts.

 

If you are interested in volunteering or donating food, please contact Margarida at margarida@collegevisions.org.

Adrienne's Head Shaving Fundraiser

Yep - you read that correctly! On April 3rd, Adrienne will be shaving off her 24 inches of hair and donating it all to Locks of Love, a nonprofit that provides hair pieces to disadvantaged children with chronic medical hair loss. And you can come watch for only $5! All proceeds from the event will benefit CV. So far she's already raised $75 towards her $500 goal!

When: Saturday, April 3, 2pm

Where: Firehouse XIII, 41 Central St., Providence, RI
Entrance: $5

Want to cut off one of Adrienne's braids?: Additional $5

If you can't come, but still want to support Adrienne's project, please consider donating online at http://www.firstgiving.com/adj.

One of the initiatives in CV's new College Success Program is to work closely with a core group of 16 first years at the Community College of RI. These students are meeting regularly with CV advisors, participating in CV pre-semester orientations, and working hard to succeed at CCRI. A recent New York Times article highlights the growing trend in the college access field to focus on college completion, not just access.

 

Yuselly Mendoza, CCRI '11, participates in this pilot program.

 

"I finished my first semester at CCRI, and it was a great accomplishment. I managed to turn in all my assignments and received good grades. To be honest, I have better grades now than I did in high school. I worry more, because I know [college] is serious, and the fact that no one is telling me what to do means that it's all up to me whether I keep going or not. I'm in my second semester now, and so far I'm keeping everything on task. As they all say, 'Hard work pays off!'

 

"This semester I'm looking forward to my Western Civilization and Psychology courses, which definitely brings back high school memories, because all the work and lectures that my professors are teaching are related to the multi-cultural and psychology classes I took during my senior year. Most of my classes are at night, and it may sound silly, but I like taking night classes. I meet more interesting people than I do in the morning, and it seems to me that the professors are friendlier since it's the end of the day. They want to make the classes smooth, not only for them, but for us also.

 

"I go to three different campuses: Liston in Providence, Downcity (downtown), and Knight in Warwick. My schedule is crazy, but at the same time it is exciting. When I'm in Downcity, my next class is at Liston, and I only have thirty minutes to get there. Since I take public transportation, there have been times when I missed the bus and had to power walk to Liston, knowing that I only had fifteen minutes to get there. The funny thing is that there were other students who missed the bus too, and asked if they could walk with me. Missing the bus and power walking to class was another way that I met people. Overall, CCRI is pretty cool."

 

 

The third annual event had close to 40 alumni in attendance, including one college graduate! It was wonderful to see many CV alums and hear about all the amazing things they're doing in college. During the conference, alumni learned about various job and internship opportunities and the graduate school application process. In addition, the CV Alumni community launched the first ever CV Alumni Fundraising Project with a goal to raise $500 in 2010 to give back to CV, and already raised $63 toward the goal at the Alumni Conference! Also, during the conference, CV alumni discussed and brainstormed ideas for an alumni advisory board.

 

Many thanks to all the CV alumni for coming out to the conference.

If you are a CV alumni interested in joining the CV Alumni Board, please email adrienne@collegevisions.org.

Servio (L) and Jan-Delle discuss different ways to fund raise for CV.