a combination of external funding, work study awards and partnerships,
BruinCorps provides internship opportunities for approximately 270 UCLA
students and serves nearly 3,000 community members each year.
Candelyn
Candelaria, BruinCorps’ new director, anticipates an increasing
and sustained demand by students for a meaningful experience of civic
engagement though BruinCorps, requiring new funding and expanded partnerships.
“We have incorporated an additional volunteer program,”
she says, “to accommodate the numbers of UCLA students seeking
service-learning opportunities.” Candelaria isn’t surprised
at the growing interest in the program, saying, “BruinCorps offers
an excellent opportunity to develop exceptional leadership skills, provide
direct service and contribute to the educational advancement of others.”
Early
Academic Outreach
Programs (EAOP)
Established
in 1976, the Early Academic Outreach Programs (EAOP) unit is dedicated
to providing postsecondary opportunities for disadvantaged high school
students by increasing their academic competitiveness for admission to
top universities like UCLA. Early academic preparation programs are designed
to help students take personal responsibility for their academic and personal
achievement. Students in 60 high schools and 32 middle schools receive
assistance in developing individualized academic plans for UC admission,
college preparatory information, and test preparation and academic workshops.
Says EAOP
director Debra Pounds, “Because of the Chancellor’s commitment
to these programs, we have not had to eliminate any schools despite budget
cuts. But we have had to look for external funding and grants to protect
and extend our outreach efforts.”
For example,
Access Granted is a program funded by a grant from the SBC Foundation,
the philanthropic arm of the telecommunications company. Started in the
fall of 2004, the program's 16 tutors and advisers — all UCLA undergraduates
— focus specifically on math preparation and college readiness with
students from four participating local high schools.
Access
Granted and other EAOP programs are accomplishing a lot, but Pounds
knows that their success also requires community and parental support.
“With their parents’ involvement and encouragement,”
says Pounds, “these students can get the comprehensive academic
and college guidance required to help them meet the stringent admissions
requirements of competitive universities like those in the UC system.”
Some
local high schools are so convinced of the value added by UCLA’s
EAOP site coordinators and tutors that they have started to subsidize
some of the costs, despite being under considerable financial strain
themselves. So although outreach programs at UCLA aren’t entirely
safe from the budget axe, the community’s belief in — and
the University’s commitment to — these efforts are as strong
as ever.
BruinCorps
BruinCorps,
another key outreach and service learning program, was launched in 1997
in response to a national focus on literacy and community service. BruinCorps
currently houses three programs — AmeriCorps, Community-Based
Learning, and Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) — providing
academic enrichment for pre-kindergarten through high school students
as well as college counseling in communities with limited access to
college information. Almost entirely student-staffed, BruinCorps offers
UCLA students training in the field of education while fostering a lifelong
commitment to community service.
The
AmeriCorps program trains and supervises UCLA students who tutor and mentor
children pre-kindergarten though 8th grade from under-resourced communities.
The program currently serves more than 1,000 children in nine Los Angeles
Unified School District elementary schools, six community agencies, and
five Head Start centers located in east Los Angeles, south Los Angeles
and Culver City. BruinCorps
tutors also offer academic support and life skills training for at-risk
youth (aged 14 to 21) though the Community-Based Learning Program at four
community centers in Los Angeles. Finally, the VISTA program develops
college career centers in community organizations serving under-represented
populations. Through 
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