“I’m a handyman. My money is within my own means. Like, if I got my tools, I’m never broke.” Meet Sean Sean grew up on the South Side of Chicago and graduated from a neighborhood high school in the Bronzeville community in 2019. During high school, Sean was the unit commander of…

“Be gentle and patient with yourself… I learned that things take time from this whole college experience.” Meet Syed Syed is a rising sophomore at a two-year college in downtown Chicago. He graduated from high school in Rogers Park during the height of the pandemic in 2020. Rogers Park is known as…

“Whether it be a small community of different artists or a community of peers, I am a firm believer in communities. I feel like they draw the best out of us, they allow us to experience diversity, and they allow us to grow from it.” Meet Elijah Elijah is a rising senior…

“I think that if I’m able to achieve the path or the goals that I set for myself, I go back to the communities where I grew up, and I become that example for the next generation of Latino kids that look like me” Meet Sergio Sergio is a Mexican, first-generation college…

“It was like, if you don’t go to college, then you’re nothing after high school…” Meet Kenia Kenia grew up in Gage Park, a multi-ethnic working-class community on Chicago’s Southwest side. She graduated in 2019 from her neighborhood high school. In her senior year, Kenia found out she was pregnant with her…

For the To&Through Project, equity work means: We start with ourselves. The To&Through team is a small, close-knit group of analysts and practitioners who are deeply committed to helping schools in Chicago become places where students from the middle grades through post-secondary completion have the agency, resources, and preparation necessary to attain their aspirations and realize their…

“The similarities that you see between college students and high school students… it’s due to a lack of resources in preparing you to evolve as [the] adult that you should be.” Meet Kristian: Kristian is a rising senior at a private liberal arts college in Washington. She grew up in Woodlawn, a…

“I’m not letting my circumstances raise me anymore, I’m going to do everything because I want to do it. I’m doing it by choice, not by circumstance.” Meet Jarfaire Jarfaire is 24 years old and looking forward to returning to school. After spending nearly five years exploring different career paths, she feels…

“I needed to figure out whatever I wanted to do. I finally figured out I’m gonna take classes, I mean I know it’s never too late…” Meet Drea Drea lives on the South Side of Chicago, where she graduated from a Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Options, or non-traditional high school, in 2020…