“Since (Puente is) a club and a program, I see kids being in a more tight knit community than maybe any other club,” said Samantha Garcia Mendoza, co-president of the Puente club. First founded in 1981 by Felix Galaviz and Patricia McGrath at Chabot College in Hayward, California, the Puente program was created to tackle the issue of low academic success of Latinx students. The program has since been wildly successful, and has expanded to over 100 middle schools, high schools and colleges. Several years ago, the program came to Berkeley High School.
Although the Puente program was initially founded to help Latinx students, the program, more than 40 years later, has branched out. “We’re here for those who are educationally under-served, like students of color, students who are in a financial struggle, or (who’s) parents didn’t go to college,” said Martin Maciel Metal, co-president of Puente club.
Because Puente is both a club and program, anyone can show up to benefit from college resources. Puente plans bake sales, community service opportunities, field trips, and hosts guest speaker events. During club meetings, Yasmin Navarro, a college counselor, is regularly brought in to assist students in the college application process.
“At the end of our junior year, our teacher was helping us complete our (University of California Personal Insight Questions (PIQ)),” Maciel said, “We completed four of the PIQ’s before our senior year, which really helped us get a good head start.”
Elias Miranda Chavez is a freshman who recently joined Puente. “I thought it would be fun to go on field trips, and also to learn about college,” Miranda Chavez said. He has been to several meetings, which have discussed different aspects of the program
“I feel like our cohort is a lot more knowledgeable about college application stuff than a lot of kids our age,” Garcia said, “Like in sophomore year, we already knew the (application) process, and I feel like a lot more kids need that.”
One way members discover the type of college that interests them is through field trips. Puente goes on field trips bi-monthly to tour different colleges. “I get to know the college (and) I won’t have to visit the college next year … I think that’s the biggest benefit—I know what the campus is like, I know what the school is like,” said Puente member Indi Many.
Puente has toured colleges including University of California (UC) Davis, UC Santa Cruz, and California State Universities. “Right now we’re trying to have a field trip in late October where we go down to San Jose State,” Garcia said.
For students in their sophomore and junior year, the Puente program has a unique opportunity: English class is replaced with Puente World English, which is essentially the same class but with a smaller Puente cohort for both years.
Every week, Puente members gather to tutor each other on different subjects. “It’s not even one person tutoring another person, it’s kind of like we’re all in a big group helping out each other,” Maciel said.
Puente members spend significant time together. They can be in the same English class for two years, and participate in bake sales and field trips together.
“I feel really close with our other members ... (It’s)cool seeing everybody from where we started, especially looking back at photos and stuff, seeing everybody grow up, seeing everybody mature,” Maciel said. Puente students benefit from academic resources and a supportive community. “It’s really important to have something like (Puente) ... (students) can feel like they’re lost, like they don’t know what they’re doing,” Maciel said, “... it’s really important to just have that community where people really care about you.”