SAN DIEGO, Calif. (KGTV) — On Sunday, an event was held at Seaworld to celebrate the achievements of 175 San Diego high school graduates who have worked closely with the non-profit Reality Changers. Most of the students in attendance will be the first in their family to attend college.
Reality Changers aims to help underserved, low-income communities across San Diego by giving students the tools they need to get into college.
“For me it’s genuinely been one of the most guiding sources in my life,” said Jabze Solomon, a local high school student who spoke at Sunday’s Reality Changers event. “I’m going to George Washington for political science and I’m hoping to minor in sociology and English and writing. After that I want to go to law school and hopefully become a public defender.”
The Reality Changers program not only helps kids through the application process but also encourages them to dream big along the way.
“It’s impacted me because as a first generation student, I don’t have a family that’s very knowledgeable about the college application process and just how to take advantage of resources that are out there,” said Haset Moloro. “I’m hoping to major in molecular and cell biology and then hopefully minor in global health because my family came from Ethiopia and I want to work on bettering global health.”
The non-profit’s president, Tamara Craver, says this year’s graduating seniors collectively earned more than $10 million in scholarships to universities across the U.S.
“I am absolutely over the moon today,” said Craver. “When we think about how we change realities…we’re not only changing the students' realities but we’re changing their families and their communities because when these students go off to college it’s a ripple effect. It’s going to affect everyone in their family because now they can say I know someone who went to college.”
“As a first generation college student myself, this is really exciting to see how these students and families really go through a transformational experience and today is like the culmination and celebration of that transformation,” added Steven Jones, a Reality Changers board member.
You can learn more about the non-profit on their website.
