UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON DREAM PROJECT

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    • November 19 & 20, 2011

    Admissions Workshop Weekend is this weekend!

    Hundreds of high-school students will descend on the UW campus this weekend (Nov 19 & 20) to work with mentors, writing tutors and admissions counselors from universities and colleges across Washington. Looking for information about Admissions Workshop Weekend? You can find details and sign up to attend by clicking here.


    January 27, 2011

    Dream Project gets $972,000 grant from Gates Foundation, plans to expand, deepen work

    A recent $972,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the first major grant awarded to the Dream Project, will more than double the size of the program over the next three years. The program will expand its geographical reach into all South King County school districts – Seattle, Renton, Kent, Tukwila, Highline, Federal Way and Auburn – and increase the overall number of high school student participants, in some cases working with 100 percent of a high school's juniors and seniors. The grant will enable the Dream Project to work effectively with approximately 3,000 high school students and 2,800 college student mentors over the next three years.

    January 24, 2011

    Dream Project named "Charity of the Month" by Seattle Seahawks and KIRO Radio

    The University of Washington’s Dream Project received a $2,000 donation from Bonneville International and the Seattle Seahawks Monday at a ceremony in Guggenheim Hall. The donation is part of a monthly appreciation program by Bonneville Seattle Radio to highlight charities in Seattle.

    January 12, 2010

    Upcoming FAFSA Workshops

    The Dream Project hosts FAFSA nights at our partner high schools throughout January. Dream Scholars and their parents are welcome to attend any workshop, not just the one at their high school.

    • Ida B. Wells: January 26, 6 PM, Chemistry Library
    • Foster: January 13th, 6-8 PM, Foster HS Library
    • Ingraham: January 11th, Time TBA, Ingraham HS Library
    • Cleveland: January 13th, 6-8 PM, Room TBA
    • Renton: Wed Jan 12th, 6:30pm
    • Chief Sealth: Jan 26
    Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

    First annual Scholarship Kickoff at Mary Gates Hall

    Last Saturday's Scholarship Weekend Kickoff was a great success as the first Dream Project event of this year. 215 high school students came from more than 15 schools to learn more about how they can afford to go to college. Michael Peralta gave an engaging presentation on the process of finding scholarships, and students even got a surprise visit from Sam Lim via Skype! With Michael's advice along with lists of local and national scholarships provided to them, students took a snack break and then headed to classrooms and computer labs to work with mentors. 140 Dream Project mentors came out to support the Dream scholars, working with them on scholarship research, applications, and essays. Students began the scholarship process, and many even finished an application.

    Tuesday, May 25th

    Spring BBQ 2010

    On Tuesday, May 25th 2010, the Dream Project hosted our fifth annual Spring BBQ in the Don James Center in Husky Stadium. Over 400 high school students came from 10 of our partner high schools. Students took a Mentor-led tour around campus and sat in on a real lecture. For many of our students, this was their first experience on a college campus. During lunch, our guest speaker Anthony Kelley, Admissions Advisor for UW Bothell, spoke about his experiences with college and encouraged the students to pursue higher education. Pictures from the BBQ can be seen here.

    Thursday, May 13th, 2010

    Fourth Annual "Live the Dream" Scholarship Event

    The University of Washington Dream Project hosted its fourth annual "Live the Dream" Scholarship event on Thursday, May 13th, 2010, recognized the twelve "Live the Dream" scholarship recipients and celebrated the accomplishments of the 2009-2010 Dream Scholar cohort. Regents Sally Jewell, Joanne Harrell and Ben Golden were among the UW community leaders in attendance. The event also highlighted some of the program's national expansion efforts to Colorado State University and high school expansion into four schools within the Greater Seattle area this past year (Evergreen campuses and Ida B. Wells High School). Congratulations to our scholarship recipients. We look forward to seeing you next fall.
    Check out pictures from the event here.

    Monday, January 18th, 2010

    MLK Day of Service

    On Martin Luther King Day, instead of taking a day off from school Dream Project made it a day on. Dream Team mentors and students gave back to the community by pulling out invasive plants and planting native plants in their place at Beacon Hill's Cheasty Greenspace. It was a good way for some of our students to receive community service hours (a high school graduation requirement for some of the schools we serve), get to know each other, make new friends, and most importantly give back to our community. With over 60 volunteers, we accomplished what would have taken EarthCorps 15 days to finish in one day. It was a great success as we recognized that MLK day was a way for all of us to come together and give back.

    Saturday, December 12th, 2009

    Dream Project Fall Social

    On Saturday, December 12th, the UW Dream Project hosted it's inaugural social at the University of Washington to celebrate our student's progress and success on the college admissions process. Dream Team members and Dream Scholars challenged one another at bowling, pool, ping pong, arcade games, and even battled it out on game consoles. After 2 hours, the social moved down to the Ethnic Cultural Center where we made gingerbread houses and played board games. It was a great success with a turnout of 70 Dream Scholars and 40 Dream Team members. Make sure to check out the pictures in our photo gallery!

    Saturday, Sunday, November 14-15, 2009

    Dream Project Admissions Workshop Weekend

    During the weekend of Nov. 14th and 15th, over 300 students attended Dream Project's Admissions Workshop Weekend. All nine Dream Project schools, Hawksquad, MESA, and interested students from outside of the Dream Project attended. Transportation from the schools to the event was available in the form of yellow school buses. Each day kicked off with breakfast, then an inspirational and informative talk by Grant Twitchell, a University of Washington Admissions Counselor. Twitchell helped the students understand the admissions process for several different schools around the state so that they were prepared to fill out the application for the schools that they were interested in. Students then moved to Mary Gates Hall where they met with their Dream Team Mentors as well as Graduate Writing Tutors who helped them with their college applications in any way they could. Lunch was provided, and there were snacks such as Jamba Juice available throughout the weekend. All in all, the event was a success! Many of the students came with ideas and left with entire applications ready to be turned in. The Dream Project would like to send out a big "Thank you!" to the students, volunteers, and Dream Team members for making Admissions Workshop Weekend so wonderful.

    Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, October 21-23, 2009

    College Board Forum 2009

    From October 21-23, 2009, UW Dream Project student leaders attended the College Board Forum 2009 in New York City, NY. This year's theme for the conference was Education and the American Future. Dream Project student leaders presented on the Dream Project's model for college access and college degree completion as part of its national expansion efforts and connected with representatives from colleges across the country. For more information on the College Board Forum, please visit this page.

    Saturday, October 17, 2009

    Dream Project Scholarship Workshop

    On Saturday, October 17th, over 120 high school students attended the Dream Project's largest Scholarship Workshop Weekend ever at the UW-Seattle campus to learn about and start their own scholarship application process. Students learned how to find, choose, and apply competitively for scholarships during a Scholarship Junkies presentation by Sam Lim. After a fun-filled pizza lunch, they worked with Dream Team members on signing up for scholarship websites, finding scholarships for which they are eligible, brainstorming essay ideas, and applying for scholarships. At the end of the day, everyone celebrated their hard work and success with an ice cream social. If you missed this event or want more help with your scholarship or college applications, make sure to attend one or both days of Admissions Workshop Weekend on November 14th and 15th.

    Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, September 22-24, 2009

    Colorado State University Diversity Conference 2009

    From September 22-24, 2009, UW Dream Project student leaders participated in the Colorado State University Diversity Conference 2009 in Fort Collins, CO, and presented on the Dream Project's innovative two-track model for outreach, service learning, and college student retention. Sponsored by Colorado State University's Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, the Dream Project's workshop represents the latest in its efforts to expand the Dream Project model to other universities and colleges across the country. Visit Colorado State University's Diversity Conference website for more information.

    September 16th, 2009

    NCAN Conference, San Francisco 2009

    On September 16th, members of the Dream Project attended the National College Access Network (NCAN) Conference in San Francisco, California. While there, they had the privilege of networking with other outreach programs from around the country and participated in a panel with other organizations that are also student-run or run by recent college graduates. The panel was moderated by Shari Ranis of the Bill and Milenda Gates Foundation and in attendance was Strive For College, the National College Advising Corps and Michigan Campus Compact. The panel shared effective practices and discussed plans for expansion as well as the importance of research and data collection as a means of perfecting their models.

    Saturday, August 1st, 2009

    Summer Picnic

    On Saturday, August 1st, 20 Dream Project mentors and 40 high school students took a break from the heat to meet at Alki Beach for a few hours to share food and play games. Social events like the picnic during the summer are essential to maintaining the mentor-mentee relationship developed in spring so that they can be called upon in the fall while writing personal statements.

    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.

    May 16, 2008

    150 Dream Scholars visit UW campus for annual Dream Project Spring BBQ

    On Friday May 16th, 2008 the Dream Project hosted its third annual Spring BBQ on the University of Washington campus. With over 150 Dream Scholars from our seven partner schools in attendance, the event was a great success. Dream Scholars were given the opportunity to sit in on a UW course and tour the campus with members of the UW Dream Team. The day culminated with a BBQ held in Haggett Hall, a residence hall on North Campus. The event served as a great way for the students to meet one another and to envision themselves on the UW campus someday.

    May 1, 2008

    Dream Project presents second annual "Live the Dream" scholarships

    On Thursday, May 1st, 2008 the Dream Project awarded its 2nd annual “Live the Dream” Scholarships to nine Dream Project participants who will be attending the University of Washington in the fall. Regent Connie Proctor, and King County Councilmember Larry Gossett were among the community leaders in attendance. The evening followed the theme of “Our Inherited Dream” to honor those who had come before us, and to celebrate those who will lead in the years to come. The highlight of the night was the presentation of our nine scholarships as well as a plaque for each high school to commemorate the awardees. Two students shared their stories with the audience and one of our high school counselors shared her perspective. It was a night of emotion and great pride for our wonderful students. Congratulations to our scholarship winners!

    January 21, 2008

    Restoring salmon habitat on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service

    Members of the Dream Team made the MLK Day holiday a "day on" instead of a day off by helping to restore salmon habitat along the Cedar River. Over 35 volunteers planted 400 trees on a restoration site alongside the river. A King County ecologist was on hand to teach the Dream Project members about the importance of our restoration efforts, and everyone had a lot of fun getting a little dirty. Click on the picture at right for more.

    January 14 – 16, 2008

    Dream Project FAFSA Nights at high schools

    The Dream Project hosted multiple "FAFSA Night" financial aid workshops at each of our six high schools during the second week of January. Dream Scholars who attended received the help of Kay Lewis, the Director of the Office of Student Financial Aid at the UW, other Financial Aid Advisors, and Dream Team Members. Nearly fifty students and their parents attended, most of whom walked out of the workshops with submitted FAFSA forms and a newly found confidence in being able to pay for college! In addition, the workshops gave parents a great opportunity to learn more about the financial aid process and work with their children to get all of their questions answered.

    Saturday, January 5, 2008

    Dream Project and GMSA host first Scholarship Workshop Weekend

    The Dream Project partnered with the Gates Millennium Scholars Association of UW to host the first annual Scholarship Weekend on January 5th, 2008, at the University of Washington campus. Thirty-five students from 12 different Seattle-area high schools attended, making this workshop a great success. Sam Lim, the Dream Project's foremost "scholarship guru," provided an in-depth presentation about how to find and apply for the best scholarships, and a computer lab in Mary Gates Hall was open for the students to work on applications with mentors and writing tutors from both the Dream Team and the GMSA. Over the course of the workshop, the diverse group of students who attended made considerable progress on scholarship essays and applications.

    Friday, December 14, 2007

    Dream Project featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education

    The Chronicle of Higher Education, the major source of news for academia, featured the Dream Project in the December 14th issue of its weekly magazine. To read the article, please visit the Chronicle website:

    Saturday and Sunday, November 3 and 4, 2007

    Second Admissions Workshop Weekend a huge success

    During the first weekend of November, over 100 high school seniors came to the UW to work on college applications and to research scholarships. The high schoolers worked with more than 40 UW Dream Project students and a dozen graduate writing tutors to brainstorm, write, and edit their personal statements. With many colleges and universities turning to a "holistic review" style of admissions, students are able to tell more about themselves and show who they are as individuals, beyond grades and test scores. One-on-one attention allowed the high schoolers to confidently put their best foot forward with their all applications. Many of the students attended both days and walked away with completed applications and personal statements.

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

    Tuesday, April 10, 2007

    First "Live the Dream" Scholarships Presented

    On Monday, April 9, the first "Live the Dream" Scholarships were presented to six Dream Project participants who will be attending the University of Washington in the Fall. The event took place in the Walker-Ames Room at Kane Hall on the University of Washington campus. President Mark Emmert congratulated the recipients and a number of university administrators and community leaders were in attendance to support the students. Congratulations to all of them! Click here to meet all of the scholarship recipients.

    Monday, October 23, 2006

    Dream Project hosts first-of-its-kind Admissions Workshop Weekend

    Students from six Seattle-area high schools gathered at the University of Washington's Mary Gates Hall for two days of intense application and essay work the weekend of October 21st and 22nd. Organized by the Dream Project, the event paired graduate writing tutor volunteers with the high schoolers for one-on-one help on application essays. Many students arrived Saturday morning with a blank piece of paper and left Sunday afternoon with a polished essay ready to submit with their application. To read more about the weekend, see the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:

    Wednesday, October 11, 2006

    Coming Up: Admissions Workshop Weekend

    On Saturday October 21 and Sunday October 22 we are hosting Admissions Weekend on the UW campus in Mary Gates Hall from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. This intensive workshop will be aimed specifically at fine tuning Dream Scholars’ college admissions essays and applications. At hand will be UW college admissions counselors, writing tutors, and Dream Team college students to help the Scholars finish the process. Parents/guardians are strongly encouraged to come to the informational portion of the event from 9:00 to 10:00 AM, which will be offered both days. This is an opportunity for parents and guardians to learn about the process that their Dream Scholars will be going through in the coming months and to find out how they can assist them in this process. Lunch will be provided for the students as well as plenty of computer space and essay tutoring classrooms. Be sure to join us for our first ever UW Dream Project Admissions Weekend event! For more information, download the Information Sheet.

    Tuesday, October 10, 2006

    Welcome Back!

    Welcome back to our inaugural group of Dream Scholars who are a few weeks into their senior year at Renton, Chief Sealth, and Foster High Schools! This year, our focus will be on college admission applications, financial aid, and scholarships. We will continue to partner up a couple times a week at each high school throughout the year to work on all the necessary steps for entrance to college.

    Sunday, October 1, 2006

    Summer EAN Test Prep Course a Success!

    From late July to mid September, almost fifty UW Dream Scholars participated in the Education Access Network’s SAT/ACT test preparatory course. Every weekend and a couple days in between, the Scholars met up with the EAN teaching team on the UW campus to refresh their skills in math, grammar, and analytical reading in preparation for the October and November SAT and ACT tests. Teaching sessions often lasted from 9 AM to 4 PM, and included several real-time practice tests throughout the course. This is just one of the many steps that the Scholars have taken to ready themselves in applying to colleges and universities this fall. Scholars, good luck on the upcoming tests! And thank you to the Education Access Network for providing such a thorough and intensive refresher course for our Dream Scholars!

    Friday, May 19, 2006

    Dream Scholars visit UW campus

    Thanks On Friday, May 19, the Dream Project hosted a campus visit at the University of Washington campus for all of the Dream Scholars. Over 75 high school students split into six groups to attend a UW class, tour the campus, and enjoy a BBQ at McCarty Hall. ASUW officers Lee Dunbar and Jon Lee helped man the grills and coach Lorenzo Romar and King County Council Member Larry Gossett spoke to the students. The Dream Project would like to extend a "thank you" to everyone who made the event possible.

    Monday, May 22, 2006

    Dream Project in the news