Welcome to the 2020-2021 Members of the Puente Project
Welcome to the 2020-2021 members of the Puente Project at Napa Valley College. Open to all students, the Puente Project is an academic preparation program with a mission to increase the number of educationally disadvantaged students who enroll in four-year colleges, earn college degrees, and return to the community as mentors and leaders for future generations. The national, award-winning program is interdisciplinary in approach, with writing, counseling and mentoring components.
This year’s cohort includes:
- 26 students from Napa and Solano Counties
- 92% are full-time students for fall 2020
- 80%+ of the students are working
- Majors of interest include: criminal justice, dental hygiene, nursing, graphic design, psychology, computer science and English
The Puente approach is unique in that the reading is focused on Latinx and Mexican-American literature, essays, and cultural writings in both the fall and spring semester classes. In addition to taking courses together, students work with community mentors and attend events throughout the year that include university visits, workshops about networking and professional development, cultural activities such as museum tours, and theater and music productions, and more.
Puente staff train school and college instructors and counselors to implement the program at their own sites with rigorous instruction, focused academic counseling and mentoring by members of the community. The program is currently in six middle schools, 38 high schools and 65 community colleges in California and has benefitted approximately 300,000 students across the state. At Napa Valley College, more than 400 students have directly benefited from the program since 2004.