How can you afford Summer College? Read this inspiring story about one student's determination to attend Summer College:
When Michael Chapa was accepted to Summer College in 2012, he didn’t have the means to pay for it. Not willing to let that stop him, he applied himself determinedly to raising the needed funds—and in three weeks he had donations totaling $8,600 and a plane ticket from his home in Texas to Cornell.
How did he do it?
Michael was a junior at IDEA College Preparatory Mission, a new charter school in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Out of 53 students in his class, Michael ranked at the very top.
Michael’s teachers knew that he was accepted to Summer College and that he needed to raise funds to attend. They suggested that he write a sponsor letter to everyone he knew: family members and friends, local businesses, and veterans’ organizations.
Holding on to the belief that he could raise the funds, Michael approached individuals and businesses in his town, mustering all of his communication skills to talk to people about his goal. He also held a fund-raising event.
Thirty people donated between $50 and $4,000. Everyone he asked was proud of his acceptance to Cornell Summer College, especially a couple of teachers in his school who are Cornell graduates. And when he had nearly reached his goal, the mother of one of his teachers donated her air miles for his trip to Ithaca.
Michael carefully followed up with his donors, picking up the funds himself, thanking them personally, and then writing to them about his summer at Cornell and sending them photos of his summer experiences. He adds that his mom helped him tremendously by driving him to the donors, contacting them when he couldn't, and supporting him in every way possible.
After six weeks in the Summer College engineering program, Michael felt that his efforts to get there had been well worth it. He enjoyed the experience of independence (“no one told me when to sleep, when to study, or even when to do my laundry”), and the program confirmed his interest in becoming an aerospace engineer.
A very positive, polite, and happy young man, Michael is pleased to join his brother (Cornell class of ’13) as the first generation of their family to attend college. He’s also justifiably proud of his ability to set and achieve an ambitious goal, and grateful for the opportunity to strengthen both his communication skills and family bonds.
How did he do it?
Michael was a junior at IDEA College Preparatory Mission, a new charter school in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Out of 53 students in his class, Michael ranked at the very top.
Michael’s teachers knew that he was accepted to Summer College and that he needed to raise funds to attend. They suggested that he write a sponsor letter to everyone he knew: family members and friends, local businesses, and veterans’ organizations.
Holding on to the belief that he could raise the funds, Michael approached individuals and businesses in his town, mustering all of his communication skills to talk to people about his goal. He also held a fund-raising event.
Thirty people donated between $50 and $4,000. Everyone he asked was proud of his acceptance to Cornell Summer College, especially a couple of teachers in his school who are Cornell graduates. And when he had nearly reached his goal, the mother of one of his teachers donated her air miles for his trip to Ithaca.
Michael carefully followed up with his donors, picking up the funds himself, thanking them personally, and then writing to them about his summer at Cornell and sending them photos of his summer experiences. He adds that his mom helped him tremendously by driving him to the donors, contacting them when he couldn't, and supporting him in every way possible.
After six weeks in the Summer College engineering program, Michael felt that his efforts to get there had been well worth it. He enjoyed the experience of independence (“no one told me when to sleep, when to study, or even when to do my laundry”), and the program confirmed his interest in becoming an aerospace engineer.
A very positive, polite, and happy young man, Michael is pleased to join his brother (Cornell class of ’13) as the first generation of their family to attend college. He’s also justifiably proud of his ability to set and achieve an ambitious goal, and grateful for the opportunity to strengthen both his communication skills and family bonds.
You can find the original story here, as well as information about Cornell College's summer program.