Project History

Puente was founded in 1981 by co-directors Felix Galaviz and Patricia McGrath, at Chabot College in Hayward. The project's mission was to increase the number of Mexican American/Latino students transferring to four-year colleges and universities. Since then, Puente has expanded to 59 community colleges throughout the state. As an outgrowth of its success as a community college program, Puente piloted a high school version of its program in 1993 that is now operational in 35 high schools throughout the state. Puente is open to all students.

Puente Students

  • Succeed academically
  • Are recognized as leaders and scholars
  • Graduate from four-year colleges and universities
  • Belong to a statewide network of leaders and professionals

Outstanding Results

  • Puente serves more than 7,000 students per year.
  • More than 2,500 professionals donate more than 18,000 hours annually to Puente students.
  • An estimated 200,000 non-Puente students have benefitted from Puente's staff developmental programs.
  • Community colleges with Puente projects transfer 44 percent more Latino students to the University of California than colleges without Puente.
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