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The Bay Area's News Station |
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Ronice Morris
 Ronice Morris remembers getting up at 5 a.m. to get herself and her little brother to school on time from the homeless shelter. This year, she graduated from college.
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La'mont Hargraves
La'mont's story exemplifies how difficult it is for students, who are financially on their own, to get through college. For six years, KRON4 has stayed in touch with La'mont as he fought every step of the way to his college graduation.
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Alejandro Castillo
You don't meet many teenagers who had to sneak out of work to register themselves for high school. But Alejandro Castillo did because his family felt education was wasting their son's time.
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Gary Yu
Gary Yu earned a degree in bio-engineering at UC Berkeley. He had perfect grades, but what was exceptional was what he did every day after school: caring for his grandparents.
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Byron Wilson
Youth have been asked, "How do you stop the violence?" With his father in jail and his mother dead from drugs, Byron Wilson has had to come up with his own answers to that complicated question.
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Jasmine O'Neal
Jasmine O'Neal grew up taking care of her family. Now, she is learning to take care of herself too. She is rising above her odds, to become the first in her family to go to college.
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Veronica Toscana
It's not the first time Veronica Toscana was on the news. Unfortunately, the first time involved a murder in her family. She managed to rise above the worst kind of domestic violence and became an honor student.
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Wallid Zafar
After Wallid Zafar's parents both died, he and his grandmother fled the war in Afganistan and found their way to America where Wallid has become a standout senior at Alameda's Encinal High.
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Lorna Contreras
Meet Lorna Contreras who is being honored for rising above tremendous obstacles. Lorna is an honor student, a musician and a debater. But her great accomplishment may have been helping her mother learn to walk again.
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Demarus Allen
How do you go from being homeless, a ward of the court to being an honor student with a 4.3 GPA? Meet Demarus Allen who is beating the odds. His solution began with music and his clarinet.
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Leonard Goo
 Leonard Goo has had to deal with a devastating illness in his family. It's a disease that affects 22% of all Americans, but it's something we don't talk about much: mental illness.
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Ricardo Iraheta
Ricardo Iraheta is financially on his own. He has no welfare. His father has died. His mother left him to his own resources. But this student at San Francisco's Balboa High is rising above poverty, homelessness and more.
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Crystal Johnson
Crystal Johnson takes true joy in learning and has big dreams for the future. You'd never suspect this self-assured young woman grew up in an environment of drugs, alcohol and prostitution.
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Janasha Higgins
Meet Janasha Higgins who we tracked down in a homeless shelter. She is rising above that, and working to become the first in her family to go to college.
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Class of 2003 |
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Karl Berta
Meet a young man raised by a mother who barely earned enough to pay the rent. Despite his challenges, he is currently enrolled in college pursuing a higher education. Your continued support will ensure that he has a bright future.
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Patrick Armstrong
He's known homelessness. He remembers when his mom worked two jobs to feed her children. While his mother worked nights, he helped raise his little sister. Meet Patrick Armstrong, a student who is beating the odds.
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Kady Runyon
Kady Runyon, escaped an abusive home, got a full time job, stayed in school and hopes to be a psychologist. But for now, she's beating the odds.
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Shirley Liu
Shirley Liu grew up without parents. She was a ward of court and lived in transitional housing. Despite challenges in her life, she is now living independently while enrolled in college.
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Damon Witts
Damon has moved into a family housing while continuing to raise his younger sister. Beating the Odds has helped him realize his college dream of attending Cal Berkeley to pursue a career in engineering.
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Bianca Yarborough
Meet Bianca Yarborough, a bright student who went from panhandling to beating the odds.
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Stevon Cook
Stevon Cook wasn't always the kind of kid you'd expect to be a serious student. He used to be a kid headed absolutely for trouble. So what turned him around?
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Zachary Tabb
One teenager beating the odds knows what it's like to live on welfare and remembers when his mother had to use the grocery money for medicine to treat his asthma.
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Edward Smith Lewis
Although Edward Smith Lewis grew up around poverty and drugs in the projects of West Oakland, he ended up at a prestigious prep school headed for college. But he won't be able to go without help.
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Dusty Cayssials
Meet Dusty Cayssials, a young woman who, despite personal struggles has been supporting herself and beating the odds.
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Meet Some Of Our College Grads! |
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Silena Layne
This summer, Silena Layne became the first person in her family to graduate from college. She has had to fight every step of the way to make it.
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Yalda Asmatey
We catch up with a student we first honored for beating the odds when she was in high school in Union City. Now, four years later, we follow her as she graduates from college.
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Otis Cobb
We first profiled Otis four years ago. Otis had spent most of his life without his parents, after losing them to drugs.
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Verleana Green
Verleana remembers living with no water, or electricity and getting hand-outs at the food kitchen.
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Tina Chau
It hasn't been easy for Tina. Her immigrant parents came to America to seek a better life and her father died when she was only 10.
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| 2004 Peabody Award Recipient "Students Rising Above," formerly known as "Beating the Odds" is a series of news stories and specials reported by anchorwoman Wendy Tokuda and other KRON 4 News reporters. The stories feature low income, at-risk Bay Area kids who are overcoming tremendous obstacles. Some are growing up without parents, others are homeless, and some are raising siblings. All of them want to go to college.
The majority of these students are growing up below the federal poverty line. None of them will be able to go to college without financial assistance. You can help by donating to "Students Rising Above" scholarship fund. The Peninsula Community Foundation waives all its fees, so 100% of the donations goes to the students. Tax-deductible donations may be sent to:
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Students Rising Above
c/o Peninsula Community Foundation
1700 South El Camino Real #300
San Mateo, CA 94402 |
We are accepting applications for the Class of 2005. Every fall, KRON 4 accepts applications for new students. print an application.
Requirements:
*Overcome obstacles that are not of their own making
*Low-income or living on government assistance
*High school senior
*U.S. citizen or permanent resident (current green card required)
*Committed to earning a college degree
*Highly recommended by a teacher, counselor or mentor
*Willing to talk about life experiences on camera
*G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher
*Must live within the nine Bay Area counties
*Comply with Students Rising Above program requirements |
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Help A Student Go To College
Has someone we profiled touched your heart and you want to help? 100% of tax-deductible donations are used to support all the 2003 recipients with their educational expenses.
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Thursday at 8PM
NEW SEASON
Last season's Dr. Phil Families come back to answer viewers' burning questions and talk about what's happened since they were on the show.
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Find out more about participating Bay Area businesses.
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