CV Expands College-Readiness Program, AVID
Castro Valley native Filson Fugfugosh says she liked school and got good grades in her classes but said she did not consider going to college until her mother forced her into a zero-period class at Canyon Middle School known as AVID, an in-school academic support program for grades seven through twelve.
“I wasn’t terrible at school. I had a 3.0 GPA, but AVID pushed me to think that not only college was meant for me, but I could accomplish it,” Fugfugosh told the Forum.
Now after graduating from Castro Valley High School in 2019, she’s preparing to graduate from UC Berkeley debt free with an internship program in Washington DC this month and aspirations to go into a law career.
“Despite having to get up early for school, I ended up loving AVID,” Fugfugosh said. “I made great friends in the class, and I learned how to take control of my own education. We also toured campuses around the Bay Area. Being able to walk the campuses and talk with students propelled me to succeed in college.”
AVID—Advancement Via Individual Determination—was started in 1980 by Mary Catherine Swanson, an English Teacher in San Diego who saw that her students were capable, and just needed support to be college ready. Castro Valley adopted the program a few years ago and is expanding its reach this year to elementary school students as well as launching a new scholarship program that puts a laptop in the hands of its graduates.
“At all levels, AVID gives students the tools they need to self-advocate and succeed so they make the best choices down the line,” said Laura O'Brien, a CVHS Science teacher and AVID Coordinator. “We also build an AVID community among other students and teachers. Having that level of support is important for success. They work with their classmates and their homeroom teachers, and we try to pull in the families as well.”
The typical AVID student profile is recruited from the academic middle. These are often the first in their family to go to college. They may need help understanding what classes to take to get into college, how to apply, and help filling out a FAFSA (free student federal aid). Some students are recommended for the program using scholastic data, most find AVID through word of mouth from teachers or friends.
New to the AVID program at Castro Valley High School this year, is a new part-time AVID TOSA (Teacher on Special Assignment) position, currently filled by O’Brien. In addition to teaching two Chemistry classes at CVHS and being the CVHS AVID Coordinator, she will be helping AVID Site Teams at all school sites in Castro Valley.
“Last year we partnered with Castro Valley Educational Foundation to start an AVID Scholarship,” O'Brien said. “AVID students reached out to community supporters and held fundraisers, and as a result, all graduating AVID seniors received a MacBook laptop so they would have the physical and digital tools they need to succeed in college.”
For the middle schools and elementary schools, the AVID team helps students focus on different aspects of a learning model called WICOR, which stands for Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization, and Reading. These are used to help students learn at higher levels and increase rigor in the classroom.
“Every AVID school has an interdisciplinary AVID Site Team,” O'Brien said. “They meet regularly to increase student success and to build the school's college-going culture.”
As one of the first students to graduate from AVID at CVHS, Fugfugosh says she’s just grateful the program gave her the opportunity to get the resources she needed that she would not have otherwise considered.
“My AVID teacher stayed with me every day through the process to help with my applications,” Fugfugosh said. “She helped me with a letter of recommendation and helped me study for science exams. She made me feel like I was worth the time and energy. As for the other AVID students… we’re family for life and talk on a regular basis.”