Opportunity of a lifetime

By Brittany Blue, Rachel Moore, Kiera Langston and Chris Carden(editor)

“I want my son to be successful in life and become someone,” says Laurel McCarter, the mother of a 16-year-old Tyler Gann, Fulton High school junior and a Project GRAD student. For her, as for any parent who has a child participating in Project GRAD, it is an opportunity of a lifetime.

“It will get her ready for college and what to expect in college,” says Kim Day, mother of Kirsten a junior at the Austin East High school. 

All of the parents interviewed for this story said that Project GRAD might help their children to decide to go to college and help them financially. It is certainly a chance they did not have.

What is Project Grad?  You’re wondering what does that mean. Well it is a program that helps students in Fulton and Austin-East High School participate in obtaining a four thousand dollar scholarship to a college or tech school of his or her choice. Giving them an experience of college life. Project GRAD began in Houston and was founded in 1988 by James Ketelsen, then Tenneco’s Chairman and CEO. Ketelsen funded a four-year college scholarship program, the Tenneco Presidential Scholarship Program, to eligible graduates of Davis High School in Houston. When the program first started it was just a mere act to help out Davis High School students. Then it began to escalate into a worldwide program that supported the No Child Left Behind Act.

“Well the school I went to didn’t have that kind of program. I think you are lucky to have that kind of program”, says Kim Day. When asked, “Could you put your child through college without Project GRAD” Laurel McCarter responded, “Maybe, if not I would get a loan”.

Parents were wondering the mission of the program being were so involved in it. “The mission of the program is to ensure a quality intercity school education for every risk children in economically disadvantaged communities so that high school graduation rates increase and graduates are prepared to enter and be successful in college”, as said by the Project GRAD administrators.

Rachel Blackman mentioned, “Well I feel that it should be good for you and prepare students for college in a hands on experience”. Therefore, through the numerous quotes we established Project GRAD is a parent-appreciated program.