Diamond Mack wants to be an engineer, and 4-H is helping her.
The St. Louis senior joined about 100 other high school students at the 4-H Youth Futures conference this summer at the University of Missouri. For 10 years the University of Missouri Extension program has made the dream of college a reality for hundreds of underserved and first-generation youth.
“It helped open my eyes,” Mack said. “I never thought I’d make it to college because in middle school my grades were C’s and D’s, but going through this Youth Futures program helped me jump from C’s and D’s to an A and B average, so it’s really good.”
Students spend a week living in MU dorms, learning how they should prepare to make it into college. Classes prep students for college entrance exams and expose them to what college life is like. They leave the conference with a plan that details the steps they need to take in the coming year to make college a reality for them.
Reviewed 2013-01-24