UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON DREAM PROJECT

What is the Dream Project?

The Dream Project is a student-initiated high school outreach program that operates as a University of Washington course, partnering UW students with first-generation and low-income high school students to help them achieve the dream of attending college. The program's dual-focus approach strives not only to help these high school students, but also to teach UW students about important social issues through a unique, hands-on experience. Learn more about the Dream Project

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009

Third Annual "Live the Dream" Scholarship Event

The Dream Project hosted its third annual Live the Dream scholarship reception, recognizing 11 scholarship recipients and celebrating the achievements of the 2008-09 Dream Scholars. This year's theme, 'Sharing the Dream,' highlighted the growth of the Dream Project in the past year and expansion efforts to come. The scholarship funds for this year's 11 scholarship recipients were raised entirely by UW undergraduates in the Dream Project Class. To learn more about the Dream Project's expansion, see our program update.

Friday, May 15th, 2009

Fourth Annual Spring BBQ

On Friday, May 15th, 270 Dream Scholars from all eight participating Dream Project high schools visited the UW campus for the day to attend a lecture by a UW professor, take a tour of the campus, and get to know their fellow Dream Scholars from other high schools over food. For many students in the Dream Project, this was their first time on a college campus. The BBQ is the first big event the Dream Project holds with each junior class, and is designed to give students a better understanding of college life while strengthening their desire to attend a four-year institution.

Saturday, April 25th, 2009

First Annual UW-Bound Dream Scholar Orientation

On Saturday, April 25th, the Dream Project held its first orientation for Dream Scholars who will be freshman at the University of Washington this coming fall. Hosted by Dream Project mentors at the UW Campus, the event featured presentations about housing options and commuting, Freshman Interest Groups, registration, and student involvement, as well as a Q&A session with a panel of former Dream Scholars who now attend UW. Grant Kollet, the Director of First Year Programs, was also on hand to deliver some inspirational words about the high school to college transition. The day culminated with a tour of North and South Campus dorms, along with other important campus sites, including the Ethnic Cultural Center. The event served as a great way for Dream Scholars and mentors to build on the sense of community-in-waiting at UW, and the students left campus feeling more confident and excited for the upcoming fall.

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, February 22-24, 2009

College Board Western Regional Forum

From February 22-24, 2009, undergraduate student leaders from the UW Dream Project attended the 2009 College Board Western Regional Forum in Denver, Colorado, to lead a workshop on the Dream Project's innovative two-track model that combines outreach, service learning, and advocacy to address issues of opportunity and access in college admissions. Through the support of Kay Lewis, the director of Student Financial Aid and member of the College Board Western Regional Council, and through the generous sponsorship of the Mary Gates Endowment for Students and the Office of the Vice Provost for Student Life, the Dream Project was able to connect with universities and programs around the western half of the United States in an effort to share the Dream Project model with other campuses.

Visit the College Board Western Regional Forum site here for more info.

Monday, January 19, 2009

MLK Day of Service

Last Monday, members of the UW Dream Team went to Cheasty Greenspace on Beacon Hill to participate in the MLK Day of Service, run by the United Way of King County. We spent the morning and early afternoon working with EarthCorps representatives to clear invasive plant species from the Greenspace, one of Seattle's few remaining urban forests. Along with over 400 other volunteers from the community, we helped remove more than 46,400 square feet of invasive plant species 'over an acre' according to EarthCorps. But the true triumph of the day was the positive community-building time among Dream Team volunteers. It was an experience that bolstered the vital service the Dream Project does for the Seattle community, and we look forward to participating in more of these opportunities to strengthen the Dream Project's burgeoning group of public servants.

To read more about the Dream Project at the MLK Day of Service, see the article in the Daily: http://dailyuw.com/2009/1/20/more-just-day/.

Saturday and Sunday, November 1 and 2, 2008

Third Admissions Workshop Weekend

The UW Dream Project opened the doors of Mary Gates Hall on the first weekend of November 2008 to welcome local high school students onto the university campus for two days of dedicated work on college admissions essays and applications. This was the 3rd annual Admissions Weekend that the Dream Project has hosted. 83 students from 16 high schools in the South and North Seattle communities came onto the university campus to collaborate with Dream Team members and UW writing tutors in the drafting and refining of their personal statements for college applications. The event was a success, providing the high school students with multiple opportunities to build their college application portfolio through connections to current University of Washington students.

To read more about the University of Washington's freshman review process, see the Admissions website: http://admit.washington.edu/Requirements/Freshman/Review.

Past News about the Dream Project...