Grads Give Back: Alumni Return to Eisenhower High School to Talk About College Life

Disponible en:

Pictured are (l-r) Duc Nguyen, Som-Mai Nguyen, Jorge Quintero, Yendri Longoria, Briana Mayes, Claudia Espinoza, Saira Badat and Asad Badat.

Students representing 16 different colleges and universities answered a variety of questions. The alumni also talked about their academic and extracurricular experience.

Eisenhower High School holds the annual Grads Give Back event to coincide with college winter break.

This year, more than 40 alumni returned to Eisenhower High School to take part in the campus’ annual  [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Grads Give Back event. The first hour had Ike students ask the College Panel about life after Ike. Duc Nguyen (Texas A&M University), Som-Mai Nguyen (Stanford University), Jorge Quintero (Rice University), and Yendri Longoria (Drexel University) comprised the panel. Panelists also included Briana Mayes (Boston University), Claudia Espinoza (University of Texas) as well as siblings Saira Badat and Asad Badat (both are attending the University of Houston).

After the College Panel session, the panelists and all the returning alumni set up tables in the foyer of the campus and library. Acting as college representatives, they continued to answer student questions. To keep things interesting, event organizers planned a scavenger hunt. The goal was to encourage Ike students to seek out specific information about each of the colleges.

Alumni discussed a variety of topics. For example, the alumni shared how classes are different in college than high school. They talked about Greek life and what college food was like. The Ike students heard about the different financial options available to help pay for college. They also learned about the resources available to help students find success. The alumni also shared what the process was like to transfer college credit gained from AP examinations and more.

Bobby Mansour headed the event. Mansour serves as the International Baccalaureate (IB) coordinator at the [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]campus. Aldine ISD offers the entire [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]IB continuum — Primary Years Program, Middle Years Program and Diploma. [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Eisenhower is an IB World School. The campus offers students the opportunity to take part in its rigorous academic program and to earn an [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]IB diploma.

“The annual event gives our high school students an opportunity to receive advice,” said Mansour. “We feel that advice holds more weight coming from Ike alumni.

“The juniors and seniors can relate with the Ike graduates. Some of the alumni are recent graduates from Ike. This year we had an alumnus that graduated in 2009. The alumni also share how the IB and AP (advanced placement) courses they took in high school helped them in college. Each year, our Ike students have the opportunity to talk with alumni. The advice they receive helps them to better prepare for college and adjust to college life.

“It is wonderful to see so many alumni returning each year. Everyone at Eisenhower is grateful that the alumni take the time to take part in Grads Give Back. They inspire and motivate fellow Eagles to succeed after high school.”

Alumni like [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Som-Mai Nguyen find the event important.

“I want to give advice, support and encouragement,” said Som-Mai. “As someone who has been in their shoes, I hope it helps.”

Colleges and Universities Represented
Boston University
Drexel University
Houston Baptist University
Lone Star College
Prairie View A&M University
Rice University
Sam Houston State University
Stanford University
Stephen F. Austin University
Texas A&M University-College Station
Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Texas State University
Texas Southern University
University of Houston-Main Campus
University of Houston-Downtown
University of Texas

Alumni @ Grads Give Back
Ileana Aguilar-Soberanis (2014)
Anthony Álvarez (2014)
Ayana Ancar (2014)
Alexis Arevalo (2014)
Asad Badat (2009)
Saira Badat (2012)
Zachary Barber (2014)
David Canela (2014)
César Castañeda (2014)
Cristian Cantú (2014)
Daisy Chávez (2014)
Jennifer Cruz-Galera (2014)
Claudia Espinoza (2014)
Jeffrey González (2014)
Yesenia González (2014)
Daisha Heard (2014)
Akeem Hector (2014)
Alexander Hernández (2014)
Pedro Hernández (2013)
Daniel Khuat (2014)
Yendri Longoria (2013)
Alejandro Martínez (2014)
Briana Mayes (2014)
Mauricio Medel (2014)
Eleazar Mendoza (2014)
Duc Nguyen (2012)
Hoa Nguyen (2014)
Som-Mai Nguyen (2013)
Timmy Nguyen (2014)
Asucena Ochoa (2013)
Kevin Paz (2014)
Trahara Punch (2014)
Uyen Quach (2014)
Robert Rodríguez (2014)
Lizette Sáenz (2014)
Ana Sánchez (2014)
Edgar Vega (2014)
Noemi Villanueva (2014)
Dasia Warner (2014)
Nyera Westmoreland (2014)
Savannah Wilmore (2014)
Daniel Zambrano (2013)

Without a doubt, current Eisenhower High School juniors and seniors found the event useful. Students like [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]Valeria Durán found that the alumni answered many of the students’ questions about what to expect in college. Valeria is an IB student at the campus.

“I felt like the alumni answered every question really clearly for me,” said Valeria. “And now I feel really confident about going to college.”

Eisenhower High School made U.S. News & World Report’s Best High Schools in the U.S. [icons icon_name=”icon-external-link” icon_size=”14px”]2014 rankings.

Below are more images from the Grads Give Back event.

[Show as slideshow]

1 2 ►