MoveUPward & Onward!
The career education and development opportunities students receive through our MoveUp Initiative helps them create better lives for themselves and brighter futures for their families and our community. Marta Lily is one of many students benefiting from the Upward Scholars MoveUp Initiative. We are excited to share her journey to showcase what is possible when immigrants have access to career and employment opportunities.
Together, we can help transform the lives of many more students like Marta Lily so they, too, can MoveUPward & Onward!
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Plática Entre Familia — a safe space for students to share struggles and celebrate achievements
Upward Scholars student Luis was recovering from COVID-19 when he decided to attend the Upward Scholars Plática Entre Familia, a monthly student-staff gathering over Zoom whose purpose is to provide a safe and welcoming space for Upward Scholars students to share struggles, seek support from one another and staff, and celebrate each other's achievements.
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Student Spotlight: "Education is my passion; helping others is my calling"
About one in every six children is diagnosed with a developmental disability in the United States, according to a report by the CDC. It’s not hard to imagine that a significant portion of those children do not or cannot get the help they need to succeed in their academic journeys. Upward Scholars alum Cindy wants to change that.
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Spring Upward with US! "5 de mayo a las 5" Event Recording, Spring Appeal, & Strategic Plan
If you missed our “5 de mayo a las 5” Spring Event or want to share it, click below to watch. Read the launch of our Spring Appeal and view the executive summary of Upward Scholars’ 2021–2023 Strategic Plan.
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Spring Event "5 de mayo a las 5", 2020 Impact Report, JobUp Referral Program
Read our April 2021 Newsletter to learn about our Spring Event “5 de mayo a las 5”, our 2020 Impact Report, and our newest JobUp Referral Program!
During our upcoming Spring event, local thought leaders from Upward Scholars, Puente de la Costa Sur, and Cañada College will highlight the experiences of Latinx immigrants in San Mateo County during the pandemic.
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COVID-19 and Student Safety Net Fund Updates
Upward Scholars invites you to watch below as our Executive Director Dr. Linda Prieto provides a brief update on all we’ve accomplished in partnership with our donors, volunteers, and other supporters a year after the shelter in place ordinance began. Then, enjoy hearing from our student Bertha and her children as they express their gratitude to those who helped us establish our first-ever student Safety Net Fund at the end of 2020!
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Student Spotlight: "With Upward Scholars' help, I know we'll be okay"
While we often hear of the violence and poverty that ravages much of the global south, including Latin America, it can be difficult to imagine what that might be like. Magdalena doesn't have to imagine — she lived through it.
One fateful day in 2011, Magdalena — then 21 years old and living in El Salvador — received a haunting phone call.
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Student Spotlight: "A Dream Come True"
At seven years old, Mario’s life changed. On a trip back to Guatemala from the United States, his aunt — a student at Cañada College at the time — gave Mario a backpack. It was “just a backpack… but when I read the words ‘Cañada College’ on it, I imagined myself there.”
In 2009, at the age of twenty-four, Mario immigrated to the U.S. and enrolled at San Mateo Adult School to learn English.
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Student Spotlight: Our First Female Alum Earns a Bachelor's Degree
With Kamala Harris making history as the first female U.S. Vice President, Upward Scholars has a related milestone to share: Our first female alum to attain a bachelor's degree, Katherine, is also the first Upward Scholars alum to graduate from UC Berkeley.
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Student Spotlight: “I finally found a good use for the ironing board again”
Claudia posted the above quote on her social media, attaching this picture. From the start of the pandemic, she realized room was limited in her one-bedroom home for her two children, ages 9 and 13, and her to continue learning at a distance. Needing to be resourceful and creative, Claudia found an unexpected use for a common household item.
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Learn or improve your Spanish with an Habla Más Spanish coach!
Habla Más, which means “speak more” in Spanish, provides non-Spanish speaking adults, youth, and children the opportunity to study Spanish with an Upward Scholars student who has been trained as a paid Spanish coach in a video model in which students meet with their Habla Más coach remotely.
Watch a student testimonial
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10 Upward Scholars earn Associate Degrees...a record!
Friends and family from six countries gathered virtually to celebrate twenty-six Upward Scholars students who graduated from Cañada and Skyline Colleges. A record number of students received Associate degrees.
Watch the Graduation Ceremony now
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May Virtual Coffee Chat Recording
Yesterday over 70 supporters and students attended Upward Scholars first-ever "Virtual Coffee Chat". Thank you to all who joined - it was truly an inspiring event! If you missed it, or want to share, click below to watch.
Watch now
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Upward Scholars COVID-19 April Update
Dear Friends,
Many of you have reached out to ask how our students are doing during these unprecedented times. Like many nonprofits, we continue to focus on our mission, while pivoting to meet our students’ most pressing needs.
Watch the ED’s COVID-19 Update
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Upward Scholars laptops boost whole families
When Natalia received a laptop from Upward Scholars, her nine-year old daughter Camila was incredulous. “Mommy, why did you get a laptop?” she wanted to know. “It’s because I’m working hard in my school,” Natalia said. “So if I work hard and get a laptop, maybe you can too.”
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When a mom and her son speak different languages
Many immigrant parents aspire to have bilingual children. But for Delmy, an Upward Scholars student from El Salvador, that will never be an option. As a toddler, Delmy’s son Adan was diagnosed with a severe language delay. As a result, he has been able to process only one language.
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Setting Upward Scholars students up for success
With your help, our students embark on life-changing educational opportunities that empower them to live up to their full potential.
It’s been an incredible year of growth, and we have so much to be thankful for at Upward Scholars.
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How Upward Scholars tutors helped salvage an education
Like many Upward Scholars students, Obed came to the United States with limited formal education — six years to be exact. But Obed was determined not to let lack of formal schooling stand in his way.
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Alumnus profile: From line cook to civil engineer
When Upward Scholars alumnus Amado came to the US from Mexico in 2011, he started at zero. “I couldn’t communicate in English. I didn’t have a job. I didn’t have any experience in this country,” Amado says.
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One student's story: From the impossible to the possible
When Isela came to the U.S. from Mexico seven years ago, she had no intention of continuing to study accounting, the career she’d chosen in her home country. “It seemed impossible,” Isela recalls. “I didn’t know English, so how could I be an accountant?”
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