By Ryan Pagelow

staff writer

WAUKEGAN — After awarding 50 Waukegan high school freshman $20,000 college scholarships earlier this month, Schuler Family Foundation representatives asked for continued support from Waukegan District 60 to keep the program in the high school.

Alda Licis, the scholar program director, asked the School Board for office space for the foundation staff to work with students in the high schools and also to receive the students' grades on time.

"As the school changes leadership, we're eager to hear from the new principal to ensure that we have support from leadership at the high school," she said. "We've had some challenges to make sure we do have office space and get grades on time so we can work with the students who are on probation."

The foundation funds counselors to provide one-on-one and group coaching for students. It also funds new programs such as college tours, summer college programs, financial aid workshops and cultural excursions.

Superintendent Richard Olson said, "One of the most generous and wonderful things I've seen since I've been in education for 42 years is the Schuler Foundation."

Jack Schuler of Lake Bluff, who started the program in 2002, asked the board to continue to prepare students for advanced classes.

"One of the things we like about Waukegan is that you have a feeder system at the lower grades. We can't do our jobs unless you have students who are already prepared," Schuler said. "We could select more than 50 kids if we could see the pipeline coming."

The program started with 20 students in its first year to develop the right model for the program. The 50 new Schuler scholars — eight of whom are students at St. Martin de Porres Catholic High School in Waukegan — will join a group of 118 students that have already been awarded the four-year scholarship. To date, the Schuler Family Foundation has committed $3.36 million to higher education in the Waukegan community.

Some of the students are currently attending Northwestern, Notre Dame and Vanderbilt universities.

"By sending the students to the best schools. it lifts the community," Schuler said.

The foundation is considering expanding the program to two other school districts.

"We'll triple the size of the program in the next two years," he said.

School Board President Fernando Shipley, said, "On behalf of the board, we want to thank you for spending your dough in Waukegan."

Schuler scholars

About 75 percent of the scholars will be the first in their families to graduate from a four-year university. Many receive scholarships from the universities besides the money from the Schuler foundation and pay an average of about $4,000 a year to go to selective private universities. Diana Arizmendi, a senior at Waukegan High School and a Schuler scholar, will be going to Loyola University in the fall. Being the first in her family to go to a university, she said the program helped her maneuver through the college application process.

"There were many things I didn't know about," she said.

Besides visiting universities around the Midwest to get a feel for different colleges, councilors talked to students about applying for federal student aid.

Eric Flores, a sophomore and Schuler scholar, said knowing about the Schuler program motivated him to work hard in middle school in order to be accepted into the program as a freshman.

"The teachers always informed us to try your best now and you could get a chance to get a scholarship. It motivated me to try harder. I'm glad it paid off," Flores said.

His dad was a general surgeon in Mexico, so education was important in his family. But the Schuler foundation helps him maneuver the college search process and testing preparation.

"I don't have older brothers to ask what college is like. I would have never expected to be looking at Northwestern University," Flores said.