AGUILA YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE, INC

AGUILA Youth Leadership Institute (AGUILA) is a non-profit organization providing a unique college access program for a growing number of students throughout the State of Arizona from Latino and culturally diverse backgrounds with a vision of creating a better world. This vision referred to as The AGUILA Way is a philosophy adopted by each student, their families, staff and volunteers who share core values with the goal of creating active and caring communities.

AGUILA is preparing to enter its 19th year of operation in developing a talented and educated workforce for Arizona and beyond. AGUILA provides a college preparation/access program for high school students in grades 8-12 through a carefully researched and designed holistic curriculum focusing on college admissions and funding as well as participation in activities that promote cultural heritage, academic success, civic engagement, leadership, positive self-esteem and healthy relationships. Partnerships with a growing number of high schools, educators and counselors help to meet a collective effort to ensure college access, and most importantly, success for students in spite of the continued educational cuts at all levels of funding.

To date AGUILA has served more than 5,000 students and their families shepherding more than 2,000 students to 165 colleges and universities across the country with more preparing for flight each year. As the program approaches 19 years of operation, students have collectively amassed over $130 million in scholarships beyond federal packages with many enrolled in graduate, medical and law schools. AGUILA works and so do many AGUILA Alumni who are now gainfully employed

AGUILA’s commitment to its mission of increasing college admission and graduation rates for Arizona students has received national and international recognition as a promising program addressing the need for an educated workforce in all areas of study, with particular emphasis in areas of STEM. As a result, AGUILA continues to receive requests for program replication from communities across the country as well as other countries. AGUILA is committed to serving the needs of Arizona’s youth and has increased its capacity in serving students in the Phoenix Metropolitan area that has extended to Tucson, rural areas that include Miami, Globe, Coolidge, Casa Grande, Nogales, Wickenburg and Yuma.

Through the utilization of a carefully designed, research-based, curriculum, AGUILA breaks down financial and personal barriers preventing students from accessing secondary and postsecondary education. AGUILA’s primary goal is to increase secondary and postsecondary admission and graduation rates for Arizona students while providing experiences that contribute to a stronger sense of self, a strong connection to cultural heritage, and a commitment to positive and ethical leadership. This is accomplished through a comprehensive, year-round approach that prepares students for high school and college entrance, persistence and graduation rates which continue to increase within the program.

As citizens, community, state and country we must concern ourselves with the current levels of poverty as a significant and growing problem for America — one that has an incredible impact on our economy to the tune of billions of dollars every year, leaving poor families in despair and children without the hope of ever achieving the American Dream that includes a college education. Countless studies point to data that relate the sad stories of children in poverty who will have little to no chance of living a better life than their parents – destined to live a life of poverty, despair and hopelessness.

Additionally, growing bodies of research that include the Brookings Institution note that:

“The vast majority of high-achieving students from disadvantaged backgrounds never apply to selective colleges and universities, despite having qualifications that make them likely to be admitted and to succeed at these institutions (Avery and Hoxby 2012). This represents a troubling loss of opportunity both for the students, who may forgo a chance to transform their lives, and for society at large, because persistent low rates of college attainment among students from disadvantaged backgrounds exacerbate disparities in well-being and diminish the upward economic mobility that America is known for. Caroline M. Hoxby and Sarah Turner, The Brookings Institution, June 2013.”

AGUILA Youth Leadership Institute has, and continues, to serve children and their families who are 87% eligible for free and reduced lunch and living well below the federal poverty level. AGUILA has been successful in breaking the cycle of poverty for a growing number of families by empowering, motivating and supporting young people in creating and realizing a vision of success through a college education. In its nearly 19 years of operation AGUILA has served a growing number of students, their siblings, families, extended family, and community in creating a path out of poverty through a carefully designed holistic curriculum designed to create educated, intelligent, articulate, compassionate and ethical leaders for our future.

Additional studies point to clear implications of the value of out-of-school programs that provide a positive non-familial setting where children and early adolescents are able to express their individuality, acquire and master new skills, beyond academics that contribute to their confidence and resiliency. Programs such as AGUILA provide these opportunities in addition to a sense of safety and belonging that are critical for healthy development where adults are available to guide them through an otherwise difficult time onto a positive path. Most importantly, the program can provide leadership opportunities that recognize and respect children's increasing maturity that in turn contribute to their confidence and self-esteem.

Sadly, many youth do not receive the information, resources and opportunities that place them on a college track. Instead many grow frustrated with a lack of direction making the decision not to pursue college, or worse, drop out of high school. As a result these educational deficits have a negative impact on our youth, communities, our state and our country that go well beyond the state of our economy. Many of our society’s ills such as poverty, homelessness, violence and substance abuse are but a few that can be attributed to the lack of education which only expands our budget deficit in an effort to somehow stem the tide of a plan gone wrong.

AGUILA’s success has brought local, national and international recognition as an approach with incredible promise. More than a program, AGUILA has been referred to as an “Educational Movement” – one that works holistically with each individual student to ensure success. This is accomplished via an evolving curriculum that recognizes the needs of the student, the family and the community. Preparation for college entrance exams, college access, funding as well as valuable life skills training in areas of time management, budgeting, healthy relationships are but a few areas students are exposed to in addition to a unique experience that includes exploration of who they are, where they come from, their community and their culture. By far, the emphasis on exploring one’s personal background has proven to inspire and guide each student to take pride in herself/himself in creating connections to a personal history that serve to motivate each student toward goal attainment.

AGUILA is proof that one must “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed it’s the only thing that ever has (Margaret Mead). AGUILA is proof that people can come together in community to raise awareness