Last spring, students in College Possible Oregon’s program and their families gathered with their AmeriCorps coaches and our staff to attend Launch! This annual event celebrates high school juniors’ and seniors’ accomplishments throughout the academic year and ushers them into the next chapter of their higher education journey. College Possible Oregon hosted six events at our partner high schools in the Portland metro area, and two events for rural students in northwest and northeast Oregon.
Along with a catered dinner, games and other activities, the Launch! events each featured a variety of prizes for students. Among the many prizes were seven Chromebook laptops. Six of these were generously donated by CTL, a Chromebook manufacturer and Chrome OS solutions provider based in Beaverton, Oregon.
Annie Hess, program events manager, reports, “Many of the events had several prizes, but the Chromebook was by far the favorite and most sought-after. Coaches saved that one for last and the build-up for the winner was exciting! The students and parents were so grateful for the generosity of our donors.”
2024 Gresham High School coach Ella recalls one laptop recipient’s experience as being particularly poignant:
“Handing out the donated laptops was one of my favorite parts of Launch!, especially because at Gresham High School, this highly desired prize went to one of the senior students I support. A couple weeks prior, a student I serve, Amala, and I were researching affordable laptop options. I often met with Amala during 4th period, since she had this time free before catching the bus. We would work on scholarship or job applications, or catch up on what she missed at session while participating in track and wrestling team practices.
Ella continues, “That week, Amala had come to me with concerns about getting a laptop for next year. We looked at articles outlining the pros and cons of different models and talked about what features she might need for her schoolwork. When she left the meeting, I felt confident that we had picked out some good options to consider. But, I also reminded her about the upcoming Launch! celebration where we would be giving away a laptop.”
“Fast forward to the event: We had saved the best prize for last. As I pulled out a name from the cup, I smiled as I read Amala’s name. I thought back to our meeting a few weeks earlier. While I talked with students about the materials needed for school, Amala was the only one who came to me with concerns about getting a laptop for the fall. At the time of the Launch! celebration, most of the students still had unknown costs and logistics to figure out. However, I felt at this moment that we were able to resolve at least one of these worries in the enormous undertaking of higher education. Even though it was by luck that I pulled Amala’s name, the coincidence felt like a special way to wrap up all the hard work put in by students this year.”
Launch! also marked the end of Summer Bridge – our curriculum offered to graduated seniors enrolling in college in the fall. This program aims to combat “summer melt”, a phenomenon in which college-intending students miss the chance to attend school during the fall following their high school graduation. Research has shown that students from low-income backgrounds are more likely to stray from their college intentions during the summer months. Summer Bridge programming addresses this gap by ensuring students are taking the necessary steps toward enrollment. Senior coaches support students to ensure they are prepared financially, academically and socially for the transition to college. Through this programming, coaches work with students on things like accepting financial aid award letters, getting accepted to colleges and securing housing. Most of the high schools gave out extra prize tickets to students who had attended Summer Bridge sessions, providing an added incentive to participate.
We are so proud of all the accomplishments that College Possible Oregon students are making on their journey to a college degree, and appreciated the opportunity to celebrate with them at Launch!. Thank you to our incredible 2023-2024 AmeriCorps coaches, staff, school partners and generous donors like CTL who ensure students have the support and resources they need to be successful.
