Raeven Grant is beginning her sophomore year at Waukegan High School.  This summer she along with nearly one hundred local high school students was inducted  into the Schuler Scholar Program.  Admission into the program is based upon academic performance, motivation, character, need for guidance, education, extracurricular involvement and financial need.  Raeven met all of these standards, and she and her mother Roberta recently discussed their involvement with the program .

Raeven ( Class of ’11) was born early at 1lb, 7oz. and since has since grown into a remarkable young woman.  Her academic performance puts her in the top ten percent of her class and she is motivated to stay at the top. Sophomore year at WHS is difficult, with tough courses and high expectations, and taking on the commitment of being a Schuler Scholar with twice a week tutoring sessions, weekly ninety-minute programming after school, and additional cultural outings is a serious undertaking.   According to her mother Roberta, “Raeven needed something to push her.  She can get into a kind of comfort zone but I know that she could do much more.   I wanted to encourage her and push her to get the Schuler scholarship. During her sophomore year she will really show what she is made of.”   

Raeven is prepared for the challenge.  “I am excited and nervous all in one. I am ready for sophomore year.  Just keeping up will be hard work, but I know I can do it.”  This kind of confidence is what a high achieving student needs to make it through not only high school and the Schuler Program, but to succeed at a highly competitive college and in a highly competitive world.

Raeven is an excellent student and respected by her peers.  She was voted onto student council as the sophomore class president.  “First I talked to students individually.  Then I would go to lunch periods and talk to the students sitting at lunch tables.  It all paid off.”  Her initiative in communicating directly with her peers led to an important position in student government.  While political savvy is clearly a strength for Raeven, she has different career goals.

“I want to become a doctor.  I have always wanted to work with children and am interested in oncology.  My grandmother has cancer and  my god-sister is HIV positive.  I want to try and find a cure.  There are a lot of sick people in the world, and they need medicine and cures for diseases like HIV and cancer.  That is what really motivates me.”   The Schuler Scholar Program  is prepared to support Raeven as she works towards her goals. Raeven’s mother is appreciative of what the program offers not only to Raeven, but the Grant family as a whole.

According to Roberta “I think it (The Schuler Program) helps because no one in our family graduated from college and Raeven wants to attend Stanford!  If I was doing this by myself, I would avoid Stanford because of finances. I would automatically think ‘Oh, we can’t afford that’ so, maybe I would not have picked the best schools.  But now we are in a program that will support us.  They will help us set higher standards as far as choosing a university.  During her orientation they talked about helping us.  The Schuler staff will let us know what we have to do so we can encourage our children; send them on to the best universities that match their field of study.  If I was doing this alone I may get frustrated and throw my hands up in the air- but with Raeven being in the Schuler Program will  she will get the better guidance she needs.  I think it’s an excellent program.” 

 Supporting the families who support the students is an important element of the Schuler Scholar Program.  Many of the scholars are the first in their family to attend college and learning the expectations for entrance and success at highly competitive colleges is a family undertaking.  Schuler not only tutors, trains and takes scholars on cultural excursions, they guide them and their families in the application process.  The Schuler Scholar Program takes scholars and their parents to visit colleges across the country, helping them to explore the many options available to high achieving students.   This encourages scholars to experience things that push them out of their comfort zone.

The Scholar Program expands the academic and cultural horizons of scholars, placing them in situations in which they may not be accustomed.   This includes ten days at Camp Manito-wish in northern Wisconsin before the start of their sophomore year.  The last four days are spent on trail canoeing and camping at sites along the water.  Raeven had never been camping.  “I don’t know how to swim.  I was nervous.  The day before we went on trail I tried to get sick, I tried to go home, because I did not want to canoe. I was afraid I was going to drown.”  Raeven is often the leader in any given situation, but on trail she had to rely on her peers and trail leader to learn how to survive.

Camp provides an opportunity for students to learn about team building and leadership in an environment not easily accessible for urban and suburban youth.  “I was nervous, but I know that the camp experience has made me a better person.  It made me understand that you cannot always stay in your comfort zone because you might be missing something amazing.  The other day I woke up and said ‘I want to go canoeing.’”. This marks quite a change from the young woman scared of entering the water a few months ago. 

  Personal and academic growth are important elements of the Schuler Scholar Program.  The Scholars will face many obstacles in their lives and the Schuler Scholar Program aims to prepare the scholars and their families for the exciting future that await them.   The Schuler Scholar Program is honored to be involved in the lives of young people such as Raeven Grant.  One can be sure this is merely the beginning of a remarkable journey for this extraordinary young woman.