Success Stories

When I first joined OJS my biggest motivation was the scholarships that I would be receiving for being part of the program. It was always my dream to be able to go to college, but I had no idea how I was going to pay for it. Taking part in a program that was giving me free money seemed like a great idea. Little did I know I was about to receive something more valuable; mentoring, support and advice, all of which have proven to be very valuable and useful throughout my life.  

My family and I migrated from Guatemala to California like many in search of a better life. However, growing up in a country with parents whom did not attend the same school system is difficult and stressful. I had no one that could relate to the school system I was in or give me advice on how to succeed in it. One thing my parents always emphasized was that I needed to get a college degree so that I could grow up to be successful. Unfortunately, we were not exactly sure what I needed to do to accomplish this dream.

When I joined OJS I was paired with my mentor Ken Brown. He has not only been a great mentor, but also a great friend. Ken helped me fill out my college and financial aid applications and also did a lot of research into scholarships that were available to me. OJS took us on college tours, held informational seminars, but most important they made sure that we were always on track to reach our goal of going to college. With their help I always knew where my grades needed to be and the deadlines I had to meet.

In summer of 2004, with a lot of advice and support from OJS, Ken and my parents; I moved to Seattle, WA to attend Seattle University. Now, four years later I was able to walk on stage in front of my family members and mentor who flew all the way from California to receive my Bachelors of Science in Computer Science. I have never felt so happy and proud in my life! I thank OJS, Ken and my parents because they all made it possible.
I now work as a Software Engineer at Microsoft and have also started a business with a couple business partners called www.campuslinkup.com. This company is focused on providing an online forum for students to trade textbooks. This will make it more affordable to buy them since we all know how expensive they can be! We hope that in the years to come we are successful enough to provide scholarships and mentoring for students who need it.

 I would encourage anyone in high school to take part of a mentoring program because it can definitely be a life changing experience. With the advice and support from OJS and my mentor I was able to turn my dream into a reality. I can only hope that in the near future I have the opportunity to do the same for someone else.

Marvin Larios

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My parents migrated from Mexico to California to be able to provide a better future for their children. Neither of my parents completed high school, but they knew that it was important for their children to have a great education and go to college. I was brought up by the notion that going to college was the only option for me. Therefore, before I entered the OJS program, I knew that I wanted to go to college, but I did not know the road that I needed to take to achieve my dreams.

I had maintained good grades throughout my high school career but I knew nothing about the college application process. OJS helped me tremendously throughout the college application process; they took me on college campus tours, gave me educational workshops on many important matters like writing a personal statement and filling out the FAFSA - and they also offered me scholarships.

OJS also matched me with an amazing mentor, who I am still great friends with. My mentor was amazing throughout my whole college experience; she accompanied me to view universities that I was interested in and she also helped me by looking over various scholarship applications. The combination of OJS and my mentor made my senior year and the college application process a wonderful experience.

I graduated from OJS and Jordan High School in June of 2004. I attended San Diego State University my freshman year of college, then I transferred to California State University, Los Angeles where I recently graduated with a BA in Sociology. OJS is such an inspiration to me that I have decided to pursue a career in social work so that I may someday help someone, like they have helped me.

This coming September I will be pursuing a Masters Degree in Social Work at California State University, Long Beach. OJS has inspired me to assist all the students that I can by helping them realize that they can achieve all of their dreams. I have personally made sure that my sister and my cousins get all the resources that they need to graduate high school and attend college; I have now become their mentor.

Mayra Alvarez
OJS Graduate - 2004

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