May 28, 2001
'Magical School Bus' college tour makes dreams come true
Melissa Ureña is an 18-year-old freshman at UC Santa Barbara with a 4.0
GPA after two quarters of college. But she almost didn't make it to the University
of California.
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| Students aboard the Magical School Bus get an in-depth look at what the University of California has to offer. |
Like many of her college-bound classmates at Dominguez High in Compton, Ureña had set her sights on the local junior college or Cal State Dominguez Hills. Then she took a bus ride that literally changed her life.
Two summers ago, as she was preparing for her senior year of high school, Ureña participated in UC's first-ever Magical School Bus outreach tour and got a whirlwind introduction to college life. The group of 45 promising Compton students visited UCSB, UC Davis at Bodega Bay, and UC Santa Cruz, living in dorms, visiting research labs, and studying marine science as they dedicated two weeks to learning about college.
"If not for the bus ride, I never would've seen the campuses and thought 'That's somewhere I want to be,'" said Ureña. "I never thought I belonged at a UC campus, but on the trip, everyone we met at the colleges was very welcoming. It was like we were actually being invited."
The trip focused Ureña's dream of going to college, and it shifted her goal to UCSB. She went back for her senior year armed with advice and new skills that she couldn't wait to put to work.
"It was amazing," she recalled. "I'd been just floating by and doing what I had to do to get out. But on the bus, they had activities so we'd learn to ask questions, and they urged us to get to know our professors at college and to make connections with people we could learn from. So I did that when I got back to high school, even though they weren't professors. I was really excited about learning."
For Ureña, and others like her, the Magical School Bus tour gave them the boost of confidence and the hands-on knowledge they needed to see themselves on a UC campus.
Sponsored by UCSC's Educational Partnership Center and funded by UC's Los Angeles Basin Initiative, the free outreach program each year takes 45 promising Compton students on a whirlwind tour. Packed into the two-week itinerary are visits to UC marine labs and other facilities, extracurricular field trips, workshops on applying to the university, and lectures on everything from environmental issues to California history. Project coordinator Laurie Scolari and seven other staff members, most of whom grew up in Los Angeles, accompany the group.
"I had this idea of what a college student was like, and I didn't think it was me," recalled Ureña, who said the campus tours also helped ease the transition once she got to college.
"I didn't feel totally lost when I got here," she said. "My year has been like a dream. I've done so well academically, socially--everything. I really believe that if it weren't for that bus, I would not be here."
The bus also worked its magic on Ana Olazava, a graduating senior at Dominguez High who is heading to UCSC this fall.
"I fell in love with the campus at Santa Cruz," said Olazava. "I just loved it. Being surrounded by trees was like being in heaven, and the people were so open. I felt really at ease."
In addition to the physical atmosphere at UCSC, Olazava appreciated how accessible the professors were. With plans to major in business economics, Olazava has been a role model for her two younger sisters, one of whom took the bus tour last year and another of whom is participating this summer.
"It's very inspiring to see the campuses," she said. "My dad saw the effect it had on me, and he encouraged my sisters to do it, too."
Olazava's classmate and good friend Victoria Wilform, 17, hopes to transfer to UCSC after two years at a junior college or fashion design school. She reveled in the personal attention she received on the bus trip.
"I'm not really a people person, but everyone was so attentive," she recalled. "I felt my opinion was valued. It changed us. It made me grow up."
The two-week journey gives participants a chance to really get a feel for what college life might be like, and it gives them a break from their inner-city routine. Homesickness isn't a big problem, said project coordinator Scolari.
"It's amazing to see the kids change during the trip," said Scolari. "They go from slouching and being cool to being very engaged and taking notes. They soak it up like sponges."
In addition, each trip is followed by a full year of events for tour participants, including SAT prep workshops, counseling, and a financial aid workshop for students and their parents.
The biggest hurdles that keep inner-city youth from setting their sights on college are lack of motivation, inspiration, and poor self-esteem, said Ureña. "There's a feeling that you don't belong, that you're not welcome," she said. "I thought I wasn't smart enough, that I wasn't the type to go to UC."
And then she stepped aboard that magical bus. . . .
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