Access to Opportunity (CCRI)
Access to Opportunity is a retention program designed to serve Community College of Rhode Island students who qualify as low income and/or first generation in college (neither parent graduated from a four-year college) or as having a disability. Students who have academic potential but need additional support to reach their educational goals may benefit from the program. The program provides a comprehensive array of support services including individualized academic, career, financial aid and transfer advising; adjustment counseling; professional tutoring; skill-building classes and cultural experiences. The goal of the program is to ensure that participants improve their academic skills, remain in college, and graduate and/or transfer successfully to a four-year institution. Acceptance of qualified participants is on a first-come, first-served basis. For further information, contact Tracy Karasinski at (401) 825-2305 (voice) or (401) 825-2037 (tty) or write: Access to Opportunity, CCRI 400 East Avenue, Warwick, RI 02886. Access to Opportunity, a TRIO program, is funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Bridge to Success (Roger Williams University)
The Bridge to Success program (BTS) offers school-year tutoring and mentoring (facilitated by RWU students), workshops and activities to students of color at Rogers High School in Newport. Bridge to Success also includes a Summer Institute which is a two-week summer program for rising juniors and seniors who plan to attend an institution of higher learning after high school. BTS provides preparatory workshops on the college search process, college-level writing and math courses, and field trips. Parents of students in the program meet monthly and participate in an annual parent/student conference. Contact Maria Wah-Fitta at the Office of Multicultural Affairs, RWU, One Old Ferry Road, Bristol, RI 02809-2921, or call 401-254-3317 for more information.

College Readiness Program (University of Rhode Island)
The College Readiness Program is for people who were not in college preparatory classes in high school or who have a GED, but lack the required classes to gain admission to a 4 year institution of higher learning.  The College Readiness Program offers qualified students the opportunity to take the missing courses at no cost.  The entire cost of the College Readiness Program (fees, notebooks, textbooks, tuition, and tutoring) is paid for eligible students, in a grant form, by The College Readiness Program.  Classes include Math, Science, Spanish, and Writing/English.  Each class meets once a week from September to May for two hours in the late afternoons, evenings or Saturdays. Support services include academic counseling, advising, tutoring, mid-semester academic evaluation, financial aid and admissions applications processing help.  Upon successful completion of the academic requirements with a C or better, students will be directed to a University or College that addresses their needs and academic desires. For more information contact Leo DiMaio, 401-277-5304, 80 Washington Street, Room 449, Providence, RI 02903.

Dorcas Place College Preparatory Program
The Dorcas Place College Preparatory Program-"Bridge to College" provides assistance to students who wish to transition to a post-secondary educational environment. Classroom instruction is provided and is available at convenient times. College tours and visits are arranged by a Post Secondary Advisor, assistance is provided with admission and financial aid processes, and educational planning and assessment helps students determine if they need additional instruction. Articulation agreements with CCRI and other post-secondary education institutions ensure continuing campus support services to Dorcas Place students. Following completion of the GED, Dorcas Place provides tuition for one college course and a student success seminar class, for a total of four credits. Students are prepared for full-time enrollment the following semester. Dorcas Place is located at 220 Elmwood Avenue, Providence, RI. For more information please call 401-273-8866 or
e-mail info@dorcasplace.org.

Education Partnership
The Education Partnership's mission is to increase academic achievement in all public schools through improved leadership and governing policies at the state and local level. The Education Partnership (EP) administers five scholarship programs. They are the: Charles A. Morvillo Scholarship, Feinstein Leadership Scholarship, Louis Feinstein Memorial Scholarship, and the Providence Medical Association Scholarship. For information on these scholarships, please visit their website at www.edpartnership.org or contact Keturah Johnson, Scholarships and Communications Coordinator at (401) 331-5222 x112, email kjohnson@edpartnership.org, 345 South Main Street, Providence,RI 02903.

The Gateway Program
The Gateway Program is an innovative and creative approach to learning that focuses on enhancing services to the local community to impact a population that has encountered difficulties in pursuing advanced educational opportunities. The program focuses on single parents and offers advising, orientation, mentoring, tutoring, and other support services to help the students meet their educational goals. Eligible participants must be a single parent and out of school for at least three years. For more information, please contact Gateway Program, 80 Washington St., Providence, RI 02903, 401-277-5247.

Learning Enhancement for Adults Program (URI)
LEAP is a program to assist non-traditional students over the age of 21, who have a high school diploma or a GED, to become ready to enter college.  During their first semester, students take review courses in English and learn commonly used computer applications.  Workshops are given on topics related to college success issues such as making presentations, and using the library.  Students participate in community projects, have the opportunity to take the Myers-Briggs personality profile, and have access to career counseling.  For information call Mary Stanley, 277-5036; email, stanm508@etal.uri.edu; or write, 80 Washington Street, Room 208, Providence, RI 2903, 401-277-5304.

Pre-College Enrichment Program (Brown University)
Pre-College Enrichment Program (PCEP) equips first-generation, college-bound Providence public high school students with the skills and self-knowledge to succeed. To help students imagine, direct, and make choices about their futures, PCEP works throughout the high school years, in weekly group sessions and individually, to build academic competency, prepare for the Secondary Achievement Test, support the college selection and application process, and provide college role models. The PCEP Writing Program develops writing skills through a year-long curriculum emphasizing both academic skills and personal expression. The PCEP Science Program encourages scientific and mathematical analysis and understanding through project-based learning activities that complement in-school curricula in neuroscience, environmental science, physics, biology, chemistry and the health sciences. Contact: Kerrissa_Heffernan@brown.edu.

Preparatory Enrollment Program (PEP, RIC)
PEP is designed to assist RI students who have underdeveloped academic skills, inadequate/inappropriate curricula in high school, lower-than-average standardized tests scores, etc. The program consists of two academic phases intended to prepare participants fully for the college-level work they will face at Rhode Island College. PEP students come to the campus one evening a week for six weeks to attend classes in study skills and to meet with their Student Support Services counselor. The second phase, which occurs during the summer, consists of seven weeks of intensive academic study. The students live on campus in College residence halls while taking classes in writing and mathematics, as well as one freshman-level course for college credit. Upon successful completion of both the spring and summer components, PEP students enroll as freshmen and have full access to the College's Student Support Services program.
Applications must be submitted by February 15.
Visit the Web site at www.ric.edu/Home/admissions/pep.htm, or contact Joseph Costa at 401-456-8237. 

Project Discovery (URI)
Project Discovery is a math, science, and technology program sponsored by the URI Urban Field Center.  During two weeks of the summer, 5th and 6th grade students (with some 7th and 8th grade students) explore different themes such as oceanography or robotics with URI faculty and science professionals.  Students go on field trips, visit the URI campus and interact with college students.  Project Discovery encourages middle school students to think of themselves as college-bound and consider a career in math, science or technology.  Students are recruited from the Broad Street, Fogarty, Gilbert Stuart, Reservoir Avenue, and Sackett Street Schools.  Call 401-277-5243 for more information.

Providence Summerbridge
Providence Summerbridge is a tuition-free program for Providence middle school students entering 7th and 8th grades who want to succeed academically. Student are recruited at the end of the 6th grade and participate during the 7th and 8th grades. Through tutoring, counseling, and academic skill-building, Summerbridge works with students and their families to help students reach their academic potential and get into the high school of their choice. Students commit to two rigorous six-week summer sessions and two years of School After School and Summerbridge Saturdays during the school year. The classes are taught by qualified high school and college students. The program is housed at the Wheeler School in Providence. Contact co-directors Mindy Weber or Rameka Blakey by phone at 401-528-2127 or by email at summerbridge@wheelerschool.org.

Rhode Island Association of Admission Officers
The Rhode Island Association of Admission Officers (RIAAO), is a professional organization for college and university admission personnel who represent institutions within the state of Rhode Island. The site provides easy access to admission information for parents, students and school counselors from all the Rhode Island colleges and universities and has links to many useful Web sites including federal student aid, and SAT information.

The College Crusade of Rhode Island
The College Crusade of Rhode Island is the state’s most comprehensive college-readiness and scholarship program for middle school and high school students in low-income school districts. It offers students the steady, nurturing presence of caring adults and a rich array of programs that focus on academic enrichment, social-personal development, career awareness and exploration, and preparation for postsecondary education. Rhode Island students attending public schools and public charter schools in Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence, and Woonsocket apply for admission to The College Crusade while they are in fifth grade. Financially eligible Crusaders who graduate from high school and gain admission to an institution of higher education can qualify for a scholarship. Crusaders are expected to stay in school and work hard, to avoid drugs, early parenthood, and any problems with the law, and to be good role models in their communities. For more information visit The College Crusade’s web site, http://www.thecollegecrusade.org/, phone 401-854-5500, or write to The College Crusade of Rhode Island, 134 Thurbers Avenue, Providence, RI 02905.

RI Educational Enrichment Program (RIEEP)
RIEEP encourages Rhode Island youth, grades 3-12, to reach their goals through educational support activities and programs on life issues.  Students have the opportunity for tutoring, college visits, scholarships, travel, summer programs, community service projects, job training and placement.  For more information contact Ruth Corria at P.O. Box 9012, Providence, RI 02940.

Rhode Island Educational Opportunity Center
The Rhode Island Educational Opportunity Center (RIEOC) provides information and assistance about educational and student financial aid opportunities available to Rhode Island adults interested in returning to school. RIEOC counselors (many of whom are bilingual) provide referrals to ESL/ABE/GED programs; career exploration, assessment, and advising; assistance in choosing a college or training program; individual college admissions and student financial aid application assistance; scholarship information and searches; assistance in resolving student loan defaults; referral to social service agencies; and community outreach. All RIEOC services are FREE. The main office is located on the CCRI Liston Campus at 1 Hilton Street, Providence, RI, and is open seven days a week and weekday evenings. RIEOC services are also available at all CCRI campuses and satellites, at netWORKri offices, and in community locations throughout Rhode Island. For more information on services, to speak to a counselor or to set up an appointment, call 455-6028 or visit www.ccri.edu/eoc. The Rhode Island Educational Opportunity Center is a federal TRIO program funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Rhode Island Educational Talent Search
Rhode Island Educational Talent Search (RIETS) program provides free assistance to middle and high school students who want to complete high school and enroll in college. Two-thirds of those served are low-income and the first in their family to go to college. Services are provided to enrolled students in ETS target schools in Central Falls, East Providence, Providence, and Woonsocket. Academic/advising activities include study skills and test-taking workshops; high school course selection; tutorial referral; PSAT/SAT preparation and waivers; referral to math/science summer programs; workshops for parents; career exploration, assessment, and advising; and leadership development and cultural enrichment activities. To help students with the college admissions process, RIETS provides college tours, college catalogs, application assistance, application waivers, postsecondary pre-enrollment activities, and information on programs of study.  RIETS provides information and assistance in completing financial aid forms and waivers and in performing Internet scholarship searches.  For information contact Philomena Fayanjuola by phone, 401-455-6025; email, pfayanjuola@ccri.edu; or write, CCRI, 1 Hilton Square, Providence, RI 02905. The Rhode Island Educational Talent Search is a federal TRIO program funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

SMILE
The SMILE (Science and Math Investigative Learning Experiences) Program is an after-school academic enrichment program of math and science for minority and disadvantaged students, grades 4 to 12, in Rhode Island school districts in partnership with the University of Rhode Island. The goal of SMILE is to increase the numbers of minority and low-income students graduating from high school well qualified to enter higher education and pursue careers in >science, math, engineering and health professions. The program has a year-round schedule of activities, including weekly after-school clubs, career-oriented field trips, college guidance and preparation, and three annual events: the Outdoor Science Adventure Camp and the Engineering Challenge Weekend at URI, and the High School Environmental Challege Problem at the U.S EPA,Atlantic Ecology Division Lab in Narragansett. For more information contact Carol M. Englander,SMILE director, by phone at 401-792-9682, by e-mail at englanca@etal.uri.edu, or visit the SMILE website: www.uri.edu/smile.

Talent Development (URI)
Talent Development offers the opportunity for a college education to Rhode Island high school graduates who would not normally be eligible for admission to the University of Rhode Island. The mission of Talent Development at the University of Rhode Island is to recruit, support, and retain students of color and students from disadvantaged backgrounds who, without the support of Talent Development, could not expect to be admitted to the University. Talent Development makes it possible for students to be accepted at the University, prepares students for full time study at the college level, provides academic advisement and various support services through an assigned academic advisor, and assists with financial aid through the Arthur L. Hardge Grant. Students accepted into Talent Development participate in a Prep Program in the spring of their senior year, followed by a summer Pre-Matriculation Program. The Prep Program prepares students for a successful transition to the University by assisting with admissions confirmation, housing and dining contracts, new student orientation, and the financial aid process. Prep also begins the process for each student’s Pre-Matriculation program. The Pre-Matriculation Program is 6 weeks in residence at the Kingston campus which includes one week of intense course work in writing, computers, and college study skills, followed by five weeks taking two credited University classes supported by daily tutorials and a continued writing program. Talent Development also offers a Fall Pre-Matriculation Program for custodial parents, independent students, and students with personal circumstances that prevent them from attending the residential Pre-Mat Program. To be admitted to URI, all Talent Development students must successfully complete a Pre-Matriculation Program. The Talent Development Program works with its students from their pre-admission programs right through graduation, providing academic and personal support and a strong, accomplished community of students. For information visit the web site at www.uri.edu/talent_development/ call 401-874-2901, or e-mail tdinfo@etal.uri.edu.

Transition to College
Project RIRAL's ABE-to-College project is coordinated through the New England Literacy Resource Center and funded by the Nellie Mae Foundation. This program creates opportunities for adult literacy and high school graduates to prepare for, enter and succeed in post secondary education. Transition to College offers two sessions, spring and fall, in the evening and Saturday morning. The program meets at netWORKri 175 Main Street in Pawtucket. While attending Transition to College, students also take a class at CCRI earning three college credits toward their degree. For more information, contact Marie Crecca-Romero, creccaromero@cox.net Coordinator at 722-9800.

Times2
Times2 Academy is a K-3 and 6-12 Academy; it will eventually be K-12 in 2005. Times2 Children’s Academy was established in 2003. The mission of Times2 Academy and Enrichment Programs is to increase the number of African American, Latino, and Native American students interested in and qualified for careers in math, science, and engineering. Besides the regular school curriculum, Times2 Academy also offers its students a variety of after school academic programs to complement and enrich their math, science, and English skills. Enrollment at Times2 Academy is open to any student entering Kindergarten and 6th grade. The Times2 organization also sponsors a set of enrichment programs for Newport and Providence students in the target population of African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans. Participants attend demonstrations, lectures, hands-on workshops and field trips to museums, educational institutions, and industrial sites. Times2 Enrichment Programs and URI also sponsor a five-week summer program and two oceanography programs. For further information on Times2 programs, contact Dr. Stanley Thompson, Academic Dean at StanleyThompson@times2.org or 401-272-5094, or in person at 50 Fillmore Street, Providence, Rhode Island, 02908. Visit the Times2 Academy web site at http://www.times2.org/.

Upward Bound (Rhode Island College)
The Upward Bound Program helps selected high school students improve their academic skills and motivation so that they complete high school and graduate from college. Students who meet all program responsibilities continue in Upward Bound throughout high school. Upward Bound offers many services and opportunities including academic courses for college preparation, counseling, tutoring, career exploration, course advisement, admissions process support, and social and cultural programs. Students attend Saturday classes in English and mathematics during the academic year. Students live on campus for six weeks during the summer and take college preparatory courses in mathematics, English, science, and a foreign language. Students are eligible if they are first-generation college students (meaning neither parent graduated from a four-year college), from a low-income family, and/or are in the 9th-11th grades at Central Falls High School, Shea High School, East Providence High School, Central High School, Hope High School or Mount Pleasant High School. For more information, call Mariam Z. Boyajian at the Upward Bound office Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at 401-456-8081; write Upward Bound, Rhode Island College, 600 Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Providence RI 02908; email upwardbound@ric.edu; or visit our Web site at www.ric.edu/upward_bound.

The Youth Opportunities Guide
The Youth Opportunities Guide is a detailed directory of educational, recreational, and creative program opportunities available to middle schoolers, teens, and older youths.  An overview of each program and contact information are provided.  Although intended as a guide to programs in Providence, the guide lists some programs open to youths in other designated communities.  Programs may focus on academics, sports, the arts, community service or other areas of interest.  A database of programs can be searched by area of interest, language spoken, and location.  The guide, developed as a project of the 1997 class of Leadership Rhode Island, is intended to help ensure that families are aware of the opportunities available to the youth of the city of Providence.  Of special interest to college-bound students and their families are the academic enrichment and college preparation programs. A Spanish language version of the site is available.