“GMS empowered me as a girl and helped me to stretch my limits. It prepared me for high school academically and helped me to appreciate my own culture better. I hope I can do the same with the middle school kids I work with this summer.”
Mayra Contreras
English and Communications, Santa Clara University

“My time at GMS was the first time I even thought about the possibility of college. It got me into the mindset that school was for learning and that it could be fun. I still keep that feeling with me.”
Joanna Leon
Sociology, Stanford University

“It’s not just the school classes but the emotional support that helped make GMS so special. I learned I could talk to almost anyone because there were so many different lifestyles. We could share our experiences, and I found out that we were all really the same.”
Lilia Patino
Biology. Loyola Marymount University

“I am so grateful I was able to get out of East Palo Alto at that age, where it seemed like there were so many negative things going on. GMS gave me role models I wanted to follow who helped me be strong and look ahead.”
Maria Magana
Art History, Kenyon College

“GMS prepared me to succeed in high school academically, socially and psychologically. As part of the Pioneer Class, I felt like a groundbreaker for the school, and I am the first in my immediate family to graduate from college. Now I’m working in the Gang Intelligence Unit of the San Mateo Sheriff’s Office.”
Yesenia Calderon
Legal Studies, University of California, Berkeley

“The Girls' Middle School did prepare me for high school and set me up with a program that would help ensure I would continue to succeed. The people there had a genuine interest in my success and I really felt like a part of the school.”
Audrey Page
Exercise Biology, University of California, Davis

This spring, the members of The Girls’ Middle School Pioneer Class stepped up to accept their diplomas from some of the most prestigious colleges and universities in the country.

They all have different aspirations: Their majors ranged from art history to biology to sociology. Some plan to start work right away; others to volunteer in the community or to go on to earn additional credentials. But what they do have in common is that these graduates were among the first girls to attend GMS when it opened 10 years ago, and they each were able do so because of the school’s ongoing commitment to providing financial aid.

From its very beginning, GMS has been dedicated to opening doors for promising young women. Regardless of their family’s financial situation, the scholarship program allows high-achieving, low-income girls to explore their full academic and personal potential and exposes them to real diversity in the classroom.

“I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to go to GMS,” says sociology major Joanna Leon, who graduated from Stanford University. “It was the best possible decision and made a drastic change in my life. But I would not have been able to attend if it hadn’t been for financial aid.”

Joanna hopes to work with nonprofits before returning to school for a master’s degree in social work. She is the first member of her family to receive a college degree.

A scholarship at GMS extends beyond the cost of tuition: Scholarship students receive all the tools they need to thrive, from transportation to and from school, to meals, books, uniforms, and after-school tutoring. While the primary goal is to help students of all backgrounds reach their full potential and prepare them for the academic and social demands of high school and college, the entire school benefits by creating a truly diverse, multicultural community.

“When people talk about diversity, they are usually referring to color and ethnicity. That’s relatively easy to achieve,” says Deb Hof, head of school. “What’s hard is socioeconomic diversity—creating a mix that includes the affluent alongside the less well-off. Every girl here is able to take part in every activity, every field trip, every aspect of the GMS experience—whether she receives financial aid or not. We do everything we can to help them adjust, and the entire system is set up to help them succeed.”

Over the past 10 years, more than 64 full scholarship recipients have graduated from GMS, prepared to face the challenges of some of the region’s most demanding high schools. These girls have spent their middle school years in a social and learning community that promotes academic achievement and personal empowerment. Most in this group of GMS alumnae are the first in their families to work toward an advanced degree.

“The scholarship covered a lot more than tuition,” remembers Maria Magana, who received a degree in art history from Kenyon College. “It helped pay for summer programs to assist me scholastically as part of the package. That allowed me—and my mom—to get used to being away from home and prepared me to go as far away as I did for college.”

Pioneer Class student Lilia Patino remembers that she threw away the GMS flyer her fourth-grade teacher gave her because she didn’t want to stand out. “I didn’t really want to come to GMS at first because none of my friends were there,” says Lilia, who graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a degree in biology that she hopes will lead to a career in forensics or as a nurse practitioner. “Everyone I knew was Mexican or Latina, and I didn’t know what to expect. But the school really helped me adjust, and I made friends with girls from all sorts of different lifestyles and backgrounds. I learned I could talk to just about anyone.”

Creating a multicultural learning community is an essential part of the GMS mission, allowing girls from different racial, ethnic and socioeconomic environments to learn side by side, teaching them to forgo stereotypes and to appreciate other cultures and backgrounds. This approach allows girls to learn in an environment in which many points of view, backgrounds, life experiences, and perspectives are shared and valued.

“Our graduates verify our belief that if you give girls the right tools, they will succeed,” says Deb. “We give them a sense of ownership of their education because they are part of the process. They learn to be independent and to hold their own. Our Pioneer Class is proof that the GMS approach does work.”