Written By: Aubrey Packer, Staff Writer
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Puente takes juniors across the state, touring colleges.
Poly High School is fortunate to be home to the Puente Program. The Puente program is devoted to “bridging culture, community, and college”, giving students the opportunity to combine academic achievement with community involvement. The Puente program provides students with field trips and informational sessions focusing on college. The program is highly beneficial to students with the goal of attending a 4-year university and gives students many chances to plan a future after high school.
One of the highlights of the program is the junior class trip. The Puente website explained that during their junior year “college-bound juniors travel by charter bus up the California coast and visit numerous colleges & universities, along with some famous California landmarks”. The students travel to UCs and Cal states, from UC Santa Barbara to UC Davis.
This year the Puente junior trip took place the week before spring break. For junior, Jordana Duncan (11), despite the bus ride being a pain, “the trip was a lot of fun”. The trip allows students to see many different schools with varying environments. Duncan truly enjoyed seeing “so many schools and picturing [her] future in them”.
Many students have found a school they can see themselves spending their college years at. For Duncan and many others that school was Berkeley. The trip allows students to find what they want in a school and the kind of environment they can thrive in. For many this trip has made college feel real. Duncan found the trip very beneficial as it “helped [her] realize what college is really like”.
The Puente program places a huge emphasis on college. The goal of the program is to prepare students for the years after graduation. Duncan has found that the program “has allowed [her] to see so many schools and given [her] the support [she] needs for [her] future endeavors”. Puente provides students with so many opportunities as they enter into their lives after high school. It gives students the support they need to pursue their dreams. Puente is more than just a program, it is a family. For so many this family has given them the tools they need for college and beyond.