College Is Possible!

Tim and Carelia talk about their success with MDC's College Bound program

Tim Rasmussen was a bright student at Franklin Pierce high school with a ton of potential. Tim was heavily involved in everything at his school, but he had difficulty balancing out his life and giving full priority to his studies. He said, "One of the biggest obstacles that I had to overcome while in College Bound was finding balance in my life. At times, it got to be more than I could handle. College Bound helped me to work through those times and to decide what was most important to me, and what was not so important in my life."

Tim was one of College Bound's best students as he excelled in his work, in the class and in outside activities. However, College Bound was able to give back to Tim as well in a significant way. Tim came from a caring, wonderful and supportive family, but it was one where his parents did not have a college degree. He shares, "I was able to visit almost every university in the state of Washington my first summer with College Bound. I also was able to spend six weeks studying at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Then during spring break in my junior year I got to go to the east coast and visit schools like Harvard and Yale, but I also got to do other things like visit the Statue of Liberty, go to the top of the Empire State Building and see 'Beauty and the Beast' on Broadway. All of those things I would not have done, and probably never would have done, if it were not for College Bound."

Some of the other things that most helped Tim was College Bound's commitment to helping him with his math skills. He commented, "I know I would not have passed a few of my math tests if it were not for College Bound's help." College Bound was also able to walk him through the final steps of his senior year into Washington State University.

Finally, Tim encouraged everyone to at least apply to College Bound because of the amount of services and experiences that are not available in any other program. We appreciate Tim and all that he has done for us as a program! (Tim returned this past summer to help out with some of the new recruits into the program. We can tell that Tim definitely has a heart to give back for all that has been given to him.)

Carelia is a College Bound alumni from Washington high school. She came from a very supportive, loving family, but also one in which neither of her parents were able to have the opportunity for college. They worked hard for their children. Carelia was an incredibly bright and successful student, but lacked the knowledge and direction to go to college.

She applied for College Bound and was accepted and began her stint in a summer program where she had the opportunity to see colleges, get community service hours and improve her study skills. She shares, "I think that I really have to appreciate all the time that the CB staff took in order to put the college visits together. That part of the program truly allowed me to obtain a clear image of what college looks like (all those stairs are horrible)."

For Carelia, the biggest service that College Bound provided was during her senior year. She told us, "I believe that the fact that CB takes you step by step through the process of getting into college is a great advantage that anyone should grasp. They are there to edit your college application essays, help through the application process, and they are on the look out for scholarships, etc. They keep you on track ALL the time. An obstacle that I frequently had to face was meeting deadlines and giving myself time to meet all those deadlines. The CB senior check list was of great help for me because it allowed me to organize myself in a better way."

One of the better experiences that she had, was the opportunity to serve at various locations. She said, "I believe that without CB I wouldn't have done so many volunteer service hours, and that made a better person out of me because I got the opportunity to get more engaged in my community. Without a doubt it expanded my knowledge and experience."

Finally, she urged anyone who would wish to apply to College Bound with this:

"I would encourage someone to join CB because it is an awesome program that expands your ideas on college, gives you the opportunity to visit the college and the CB staff will make sure you get into college. Not to mention that you have a blast during the summer program especially at Wild Waves!"

More Information

MDC's College Bound supports low-income and first-generation high school students in the Tacoma and Franklin Pierce School Districts. Visit collegeboundtacoma.org