Narrator: Your middle school and high school years are the end of the beginning as you march off to college, as you march off to grad school, and all the jobs and careers that you want.

Thomas Rochowicz: All right, Class of 2018! The mission of WHEELS is to make sure that all of our students are academically, emotionally, socially, and intellectually prepared to succeed in the college of their choice. We expect that 100% of our seniors apply to college, and then it’s up to them and their families to make the right decision that that’s for them. Based on the idea that it’s to really celebrate this process that students have gone through. Many of them first generation college students.

Darianny: No one in my family has gone to college. When I mention it to my family, they’re very like, “I can’t really tell you much because I’ve never been there.”

Teacher: You guys made it to the College March.

Thomas Rochowicz: The day starts with a bunch of different activities. They open up letters from their families.

Teacher: So you’ll get your parent letter.

[Student reading a letter.]

Thomas Rochowicz: They got their hoodies, which is a huge deal. It’s them really being part of something larger.

Darianny: Everybody was like, “Oh, my god, it’s the College March.” It didn’t hit me until we were lined up.

Thomas Rochowicz: All the students from our school line both sides of the pavement. Streets are shut down. Family’s there. Community members are there.

Danny Morales Armstrong: In the youngest grades, we have our students participate on the sidelines. So they’re seeing, for the first time, young people who look them who are going off to college and seeing the community support that.

Sumayyah: It’s like motivation, I guess you can say, because, when we see them, we’re like, “I’m gonna be going off to college, and I’m gonna have everybody else cheering me on one of these days.”

Hamlet: They really look up to us, and it was amazing to just walk through the streets and inspire them that the college process shouldn’t be that intimidating.

Cyrus Mateo: Because this is one of many monumental moments in your life.

Thomas Rochowicz: We always have alumni and then we have some community members share as well.

Carmen De La Rosa: Every door that you walk through, remember that you represent this community. Hold your head up high and know that you can do exactly what your goals are.

Narrator: Obviously, we have one more thing left to do, right?

Danny Morales Armstrong: We have our students each with an individualized envelope that contains their supporting documents.

Darianny: The highlight of the entire experience was when we physically took the copy.

Thomas Rochowicz: Come on up!

Darianny: And put it in the box to be mailed out, knowing that, when we release it, it’s going to college. It’s just amazing. I could do it over and over again.

Thomas Rochowicz: Every year, it gets a little bit bigger, a little bit louder. And it’s now spread to 25 schools across the country.

Narrator: And congratulations again to the Class of 2018.

Darianny: And of course, it’s not the end. It’s just a symbol that we’re closing this chapter of our lives and opening the other one, which is college and beyond.

Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School

.css-1sk4066:hover{background:#d1ecfa;}The College March

The First in Their Families, College Bound

The College March