Twenty-six high school students from New York City's Prep for Prep program made Dartmouth their last stop on a two-week tour of 10 selective northeastern universities last Thursday.
Although the traditional whistle-stop college trip is one of the first steps in the college application process for many aspiring high school juniors, for Prep students, it is only part of an ongoing journey of academic preparation. The Prep program has been grooming these academically promising minority students since elementary school.
According to Prep Post-Placement Advisor Farayi Wiley, one of the program's goals is to "diversify leadership positions at selective schools" by providing information, academic counseling and encouragement to minority students.
Prep Post-Placement Advisor and Dartmouth alumna Hakima Fisher '98, added that the primary mission of the group is "to help minority students realize the American dream."
However, because of their diverse ethnic backgrounds, many obstacles -- such as low socioeconomic status and lack of educational opportunities and college-planning information -- may preclude the potential realization of that dream.
"Our parents tend to be at a disadvantage in terms of their education, and their lack of knowledge tends to set us back," Prep student Jennifer Wynn explained, pointing out that one of her parents did not attend college.
Prep student Rob Brown said that, without Prep, minority students face such challenges not only in gathering information regarding higher education but also in the college application process itself.
"I just think it's harder in general for minorities to get into these schools," Brown said, citing disparate educational opportunities between whites and minorities as a probable cause. "But Prep prepares us so we're on the same level as everybody else."
Wynn agreed.
"With programs like Prep for Prep, not only do we become aware of financial aid and scholarships, at the same time we become aware that we are equally capable of taking on the workload and that the higher education system is not out of our reach," she said.
Prep student Peter Clayton felt that the communication, problem-solving and leadership skills he gained via participation in the Prep program aided him not only academically but also socially.
"When I go to the classroom or I'm playing a sport I don't have to think about race or ethnicity," he explained.
Many Prep students credit the program with helping them to realize their personal goals in terms of planning for college success as well as personal satisfaction in the application process.
In particular, most felt that last week's tour helped them to get a feel for the general atmosphere of the College, enabling them to broaden their perceptions beyond the laconic description in the Fiske Guide.
Clayton felt that, in contrast to other Ivy League institutions, Dartmouth was "pretty relaxed."
"I didn't see the pressure on anybody's faces. They seemed comfortable," he said.
Other perceptions were not as positive.
"It seemed really distanced from everything," Brown, a Queens native, said of the College.
Another salient aspect of student life for Prep students concerns how they will fit into their respective college communities as minorities.
Prep student Nicole Bazelais said that while the diversity of collegiate student bodies will influence her application decisions this January, it will be a matter of quality rather than quantity.
"I think that it's less diversity in terms of numbers but more like the way that people from different backgrounds get along," she explained. "You can have so many minorities but if the races don't interact then it's basically worthless."
Prep student Armenoush Aslariian-Persico echoed Bazelais' sentiment. Although fewer minority students currently attend the College compared to the other Ivies, Aslariian-Persico found Dartmouth students surprisingly liberal and welcoming.
Indeed, she said she found the strong emphasis that some selective schools place on minority programming to be a weakness rather than a strength.
"I don't think that it's something to highlight or make a special case out of," she said. "After all, we're all people."
