(Community college students) may be more likely to respond to the marketplace.

It's got to be a dual thrust. Increase the college-going rate right out of high school and outreach to those people who have stepped out of high school into the work force.

[The six-week program takes place at Hendrix College in Conway and is designed to make the students use critical thinking skills while concentrating on a specific area of study.] You have to think about thinking, ... You get out of it exactly what you put into it.

We know from our scholarship programs that the top community college students are every bit as good as the juniors in these highly selective schools. If you really want to address the issue, you really have to work with community colleges.

Students and community members alike are realizing that the college is here for them and that they can save a significant amount in terms of higher education. With people embracing their local community college, our numbers will continue to grow.

[In 2003 the brothers learned that community college students with high GPAs could apply to transfer into the UC system. Angelo went first, to UCLA, where he will graduate this spring. Josh followed in his footsteps to UCLA this fall. Daniel decided to head north. Leaving his brothers in Los Angeles was hard, but] UC Berkeley has always held a special attraction for me, ... It has such a storied history, and I like how the university looks at the world from a humanitarian and activist viewpoint. It also has a good history department.