A Bridge for Kids Hosts Private Screening of Award Winning Documentary
On Thursday, March 5, A Bridge For Kids celebrated our 3rd anniversary with the showing of a poignant and emotional documentary entitled “First Generation”. Arc Light Theaters, UTC helped sponsor this event which was attended by a number of our organization’s friends, sponsors and donors.First Generation is a documentary which follows the lives of four low income high school teens as they negotiate the college application process and strive to become the first in their families to attain a college education. Each teen struggled with the burden of trying to find the best school for them while struggling to find a way to afford the overwhelming cost of education. As stated in this film, “in low-income schools across the country, the college advisor to student ratio is 800-1.” Not only do first generation teens have very limited time and guidance with a counselor, they most often do not have parents who can guide them through the college application process. As shown in this film, these parents have no idea that financial aid is available in many forms to help offset the cost of college. In fact, teen and parents believed that colleges of their choice were not an option because they could not afford tuition.It was clear to us, after watching this documentary, that any one of the featured teens could qualify to be an A Bridge For Kids teen. Our teens receive financial support that can help them afford college application fees beyond the waivers they get, AP test fees, SAT/ACT prep classes, entrance exam fees, college tours, and more. But additionally, and as important, they receive the support and wisdom of an adult who can not only help them understand and navigate the college process, but can also provide the encouragement and life experience that will help the teens define where they want to go in life and then help them get there. Had any one of the teens in the film been an ABFK teen, through the sponsorship, mentoring, and additional programs we offer, we believe that their life path would have been very different.At the conclusion of the film, attendees expressed an increased understanding of the obstacles low income teens face on a daily basis and the hurdles they face in achieving a college education. One very dedicated high school counselor shared with us that the film, “inspired me to be even more committed to making sure our low-income, first-generation students get the advising and support they need to reach their dreams.“We sincerely thank all of our A Bridge For Kids friends and supporters for the interest you have shown our organization. We are extremely proud of the accomplishments we have achieved over the first 3 years of our existence and look forward to expanding our ability to help many more high-achieving, low income San Diego teens create a brighter future.