By Rama K. Ramaswamy
Education is a gift that keeps on giving. Residents are invited to support forty-six years of success with Wellesley A Better Chance (ABC) and its capital campaign to purchase a permanent home for scholars in proximity to Wellesley High School.
ABC believes that better educational opportunities lead to better lives and a permanent home will allow A Better Chance to grow and thrive for decades to come. The A Better Chance national program was inspired by President John F. Kennedy and has opened the doors of educational opportunity and changed the lives of over 15,000 alumni nationwide.
Wellesley ABC began in 1972, launched by two Wellesley College professors, Peter Sipple and Alice B. Robinson, in partnership with Wellesley High School and WHS teacher Jim Barr, as well as local volunteers. The Wellesley chapter was one of the first A Better Chance community school programs, created exclusively for girls at a public high school. Since, nearly seventy-five scholars, women of color, have successfully graduated from the program. In addition, Wellesley ABC scholars have all graduated from a four-year college or university. They have progressed on to careers in medicine, law, education, and business, among other fields.
Wellesley ABC continues to receive broad support from the community, and annually, over 100 volunteers continue to support this effort to provide academic success for those in the program. Wellesley College, in partnership with Wellesley Public Schools, has played an instrumental role in anchoring the program here in Wellesley.
Donations to ABC's A Home of Our Own campaign represent a chance to create opportunities of a lifetime for future scholars.
To support the Capital Campaign or contact Wellesley ABC, visit http://www.wellesleyabc.org/capital-campaign.
The Wellesley A Better Chance Gala is scheduled for May 4.
