They call themselves De troit’s Great Hope.
They are the 124 seniors at University Preparatory High School who pledged four years ago to graduate from high school, graduate from college and to return to helprebuild Detroit. But they already have done so much more. They have mentored younger stu dents and become ambassa dors of education across Detroit, encouraging others their age to stay in school.
And 10 students, all boys, just completed a video on the importance of graduating that their school plans to distribute to middle school students across the city.
For their efforts, Universi ty Prep announced Friday that the school will do what no other in the state does: Pay every expense for the first year of college for these students, except for a $2,500 subsidized loan that each family must get to accept some responsibility them selves.
That’s right. University Prep will pay tuition, room and board, books and fees, all costs for these graduates at any Michigan public universi ty. The school will award a $5,000 scholarship to any graduate who attends a pri vate or out-of-state universi ty.
Hard work and school
Doug Ross, chairman of New Urban Learning, the nonprofit organization that manages the University Pre paratory Academy school district, made the announce ment at an assembly where four of the senior students gave advice to their class mates.
Among them were Antonio Williams and Arthur Burse, both 17.
Antonio, who lives in the Brightmoor neighborhood in Detroit and wants to be an athletic trainer or physical therapist, avoided a lifestyle that claimed people close to him.
“The dropout rate in De troit didn’t surprise us at all,” he told his classmates. “The four of us have relatives and friends, neighbors … who all decided to drop out of school and turn their lives to the streets and drugs instead of the other path, which is hard work . The four of us, as well as many others, have decided to take the second path — hard work.
And Arthur, whose family moved several times to es cape violence, said school is a way to a safer life.
“One day someone broke into our house and murdered my sister,” he said, explaining one family move.
“The reason we picked this school-college-career path is simple,” he said. “You make more money and you live longer. A high school degree means an extra $250,000 in your pocket. A college degree means an extra million. Most drug deal ers in our neighborhood have big bankroll in their pockets, but they live with their moms and grandmoms. They flash, but they ain’t rich. The big money comes from owning your business or getting into a profession like law or medi cine or engineering. They allrequire college degrees. “Most boys in our neigh borhoods who sell drugs have two options: They either die or go to jail. None of those seem like very good options.”
Oh, there was one other thing that Arthur said a teacher told him.
She said that “young men in Detroit are in great de mand with the ladies. So more money. Longer lives. No jail time. And more young ladies. That’s not such a hard choice.”
The four young men ac cepted their applause and then Hope, Faith, Promise and Potential sat down.
Terms of the deal
The final task for the stu dents at the assembly, who also had learned in various workshops about ways to succeed, was to sign their Detroit’s Great Hope Con tract. This requires them to:
■ Have a 3.0 senior year grade point average, with only A’s and B’s.
■ Miss no more than three homework assignments in any single class in the second, third and fourth quarters.
■ Read five nonfiction books on topics related to their senior theses.
■ Complete a College Readi- ness Lecture Series with no absences and at least an 80% proficiency on assessments from the lectures.
■ Complete the Study Skills training with no absences and at least an 80% proficien cy on all assessments related to the workshops.
Ross promised them that if they successfully completed the contract, their first-year college costs would be cov ered, except for the $2,500 subsidized federal loan each student must take “so you have some skin in the game.”
Ross, a masterful fund raiser, said that Detroit’s Hope is funded by donors whose gifts range from $250 to $25,000. The district’s largest benefactors, Bob and Ellen Thompson, contribute about $400,000 to students who go to Wayne State, Grand Valley State or Bowl ing Green State, which is their alma mater.
Ross said he’ll be raising about $110,000 between now and May for this year’s Hope class to go to college next fall. He has no doubt he’ll get it.
Like his students, like his boys, he has hope.
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