Local Eighth Graders Pledge to Work Hard, Attend SOU After High School
(Ashland, Ore.) — The room was packed at Talent Middle School on Thursday evening as students and their families came to learn about “Pirates to Raiders,” a new partnership designed to open doors for Hispanic students.
The program forms an alliance with eighth-grade students, their families, the Phoenix-Talent School District and Southern Oregon University. Each member of the partnership agrees to participate in ensuring that these students take all the right steps over the next five years. If they do, they will be accepted to SOU.
“I’ve been envisioning a program like this ever since I came to Oregon,” said SOU President Mary Cullinan. “It really does take a village to help students get to college. This program creates that village. With Pirates to Raiders, these students can fulfill their dreams.”