This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
East High teacher Cate Praggastis knows it didn't have to turn out this way. It could've been much, much worse.
"They could have been dropouts, druggies or gangbangers," she said of her students, "but instead they are high school seniors, all with above a 3.5 GPA, and all are headed for college in the fall."
Praggastis credits their success to AVID [Advancement Via Individual Determination]. East has offered AVID for four years, and the first batch of 16 students who participated in the program since arriving at East will graduate this spring.
AVID is aimed at first-generation college-goers: students who have potential and desire to continue their educations but no clue how to make it happen because of lack of familial support or other obstacles.
In AVID class, everything is centered around future success. Students learn how to think critically, take notes, stay organized, write college-admission essays, perform well in interviews and stay up on current events. They receive help with scholarship dates and applications, tutoring and moral support. They are required to do volunteer work.
If it wasn't for AVID, which first came to Utah in 2004 and is offered at 26 schools, East senior Davon Gardner said he would "probably be taking easy classes just to get high school over with." With AVID's support, he enrolled in some of the toughest courses East offers. He received a full-ride Larry H. and Gail Miller Enrichment Scholarship and will attend the University of Utah. Yes, full ride. A few years ago, he had no plans to attend college at all.
Gardner is one of many success stories.
Classmate Loan Truong was born in Vietnam, and, as a baby, spent seven months in a Philippine refugee camp. Truong immigrated to the United States, but her father left the family when she was no older than 4, leaving Truong's mother and grandmother (both have health problems and neither speaks English) to raise her. Throughout the years, Truong translated for her guardians and helped them fill out paperwork. Neither had the resources or know-how to prepare Truong for college.
That's where AVID came in.
"It's basically kept me on track with my academics," Truong said. "I'm the first generation of my family to go to college so I didn't have the structure to know anything."
The teen plans to become a nurse someday.
"I just feel like I have a lot of responsibility for my family," she said. "I want to make them proud. They left their country to come here for a better future for me. It's not only for them, but I want a better life so I can pay them back."
The program is gaining momentum at East. There are now 120 students in AVID, including two classes of freshmen.
In 2007, 22 students entered the first AVID class at East as ninth-graders. By year's end, two students dropped out of the program. During their sophomore year, one student moved away, and another was kicked out due to poor grades and attendance. In the cohort's junior year, one student became pregnant and withdrew from school.
Senior year, one student left the program for personal reasons. None of the remaining 16 has less than an A-minus average, and all will be carrying textbooks across a college campus somewhere this fall.
In AVID, Praggastis has found her life's calling. A former flight attendant and casting director for television shows like "Touched by an Angel" and "Promised Land," she is in her eighth year teaching. Like her students, Praggastis was the first in her family to attend college.
Last fall, she led 25 AVID students on a life-changing six-day field trip. They visited 11 campuses in Utah, Nevada and California, including University of California-Los Angeles, Pepperdine and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. It was the first time several students had seen the ocean.
"It made me open my eyes," said senior Alejandra Martinez, who hadn't realized out-of-state schools are an option. "Those schools amazed me."
Martinez believes she still would be college-bound without AVID, "but I'd be late with applications and scholarships, and I wouldn't know the deadlines" for federal student aid. Martinez plans to become a pediatric orthopedic surgeon.
She said AVID kids are a tight-knit group. They lean on each other, and, of course, their teacher.
Several students described Praggastis as a "second mother."
"She's always so caring and loving," Truong said. "She's always there, and she supports us."
Said Martinez: "We've been with each other for at least three or four years, it's going to be sad when we leave."
Praggastis feels the same way.
"In this day and age, a teacher is afraid to say 'I love you' and give them a hug," she said. "I'm not afraid. I love them with all my heart, and I know we will stay connected throughout the years. There's not a way we can't."