Paying it forward: a peer-staffed program for navigating college admissions

We speak with Michael Sanchez, executive director of Circle Match (formerly TCAT), a program that helps students in underserved high schools apply to colleges. Circle Match serves low income students, primarily of color, who are the first in their families to apply to college. Participants in turn assist classmates, thus creating a college-going culture and subsequently on-campus support. Circle Match students have been extraordinarily successful in gaining admission to elite colleges and universities. Overview 00:00-00:43 Intros 00:43-02:14 Michael Sanchez’s own K-12 and college admission experiences 02:14-05:27 How these experiences influenced the concept of Circle Match 05:27-10:34 How Circle Match works 10:34-13:56 The people involved in Circle Match 13:56-15:46 Helping students with culture shock at Ivy league schools 15:46-18:54 Students’ responses to giant differences in wealth, income, expectations 18:54-21:10 Affinity groups of different types 21:10-23:36 Why Circle Match focuses on Ivies and other prestigious schools 23:36-26:21 Working with students who won’t get into Ivies 26:21-28:38 Making connections with other-than-Hispanic communities 28:38-30:22 Next schools to partner with 30:22-33:04 Communication with parents 33:04-34:07 Data on families 34:07-35:45 Admissions success rate 35:45-37:59 Going away to college as an issue for parents

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