San Diego Giving Stories: Making College A Reality

By San Diego Grantmakers

Reality Changers is a current Investee of San Diego Social Venture Partners

Wasn't Considering College
In junior high, Robert Silva was an average student with no college aspirations. His mother worked at a convenience store and his father repaired gas stations. They couldn’t afford college savings and were unfamiliar with college preparation. Naturally, Robert “didn’t know anything about college.” So when he was approached by a substitute teacher to participate in a program to get kids college bound, he was skeptical: “I had zero interest.”

Access to Education Leads to Healthy, Safe Communities
The California Wellness Foundation’s (TCWF) mission is to improve the health of people in California. In 2008, TCWF awarded a $225,000 grant to Reality Changers, a San Diego program to help build healthy communities by developing first-generation college students. Chris Yanov - Robert's subsitute teacher - was Reality Changers' founder and president.

“Reality Changers is in the business of changing lives,” said Julio Marcial, program director at TCWF. “The RC model has become a nationally recognized program utilizing its experience to help high-risk kids become the first in their families to attend college.”

Providing Meaningful Support
Robert eventually agreed to participate in the Reality Changers program. But school was still a struggle. He avoided expulsion as a sophomore thanks in part to a personal plea from Chris to school officials. Then Robert’s mother was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer at the same time she found out she was pregnant. His parents were considering divorce, and a fight between he and his father resulted in Robert moving into his grandparents’ garage.

During this difficult time, a Reality Changers staffer named Grace Chaidez became both a mentor and friend to Robert. The Reality Changers team encouraged his community service and attended a breast cancer walk in honor of his mother. They helped him with college applications and paid for him to live in the dorms and take a summer course at the University of California, San Diego. This support fueled Robert’s own drive and helped him ultimately complete his senior year with a 4.2 grade point average. Today, Robert is a sophomore at Cal State Los Angeles.

How TCWF Helped
“After the recession hit, I don’t know what we would have done without the grant from TCWF,” said Chris. The support helped them attract additional funding to operate in new areas and offer expanded services. Reality Changers has created nearly 200 first-generation college students since it began in 2001, and it promotes the concept of philanthropy by motivating students, families and tutors to volunteer.These accomplishments have prompted two visits in 2010 by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

What Does This Mean About Philanthropy?
Grants for core operating support from foundations can help promising nonprofit programs - like Reality Changers - enhance services to realize their full potential. And during times of reduced individual contributions and government funding, such grants may be what keep a nonprofit going. For foundations, the benefits are mutual: they learn from their investments in successful programs and can apply that knowledge toward projects addressing similar problems in other areas throughout California.