Mentorship propels students to success

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Celebrating the success of CREO Students and Alumni!

Jessey (left) is in for some Pura Vida thanks to receiving a $5000 grant from the Go Farther Foundation

Jessey is a Junior at Wheaton High School with big dreams. She learned about the opportunity to apply for a scholarship for high school students with limited resources to travel abroad from Leilani, her CREO Coach. After getting more information about the process, Jessey compiled her application materials. "I was not really expecting anything to happen, but I submitted them on time because of the encouragement I got from everyone in CREO."

Fast-forward to mid-April -Jessey opened an email from the Go Farther Foundation letting her know that she was one of 21 students chosen to receive a travel grant for up to $5000 to cover the costs to travel and participate in an approved educational experience this summer.

"I was like, no way! This is crazy. What is my mom going to say?" After explaining more of the details about the grant, her mom said, "Of course, what a blessing for her to have this opportunity."

Now Jessey has to choose among the many residential and study-abroad experiences for high school students. These include cultural immersion programs, home stays, language programs, academic programs at colleges and universities, and career exploration experiences all over the world.

"I applied to do a program in Costa Rica because I already speak the language and I have heard good things about the people, the food, the beaches -the Pura Vida."

The Go Farther Foundation -Founded in Chicago in 2008, the Farther Foundation awards up to $300,000 in scholarships each year to students from communities defined by historic inequities, opening doors to educational travel that broadens students’ horizons and deepens their sense of possibility.


We caught up with Luciana, a CREO student who graduated from Glenbard HS in 2024.

What's new?
I have been doing undergrad research since I started at Iowa State. I was originally looking for a wastewater/lab internship for this summer back home, but I decided I wanted to continue on to graduate school and get my master's (and hopefully a Ph.D.) in environmental engineering. I want to focus on resilience, human-natural system interactions, and environmental justice. What brought me to this decision was an Introduction to Undergraduate Research class, where my group and I studied socioeconomic disparities in drinking water quality. It sparked my curiosity. I had more questions than I could find answers to in any research paper, and I wanted to learn more.
After talking with my professor about my future plans, she sent me the program flyer for an undergraduate research fellowship at the University of Oregon this summer. I thought it was the perfect opportunity to gain more hands-on experience and connect with faculty mentors to increase my graduate school opportunities (plus the ability to travel).

I submitted my application in the middle of February, and in late March, I was accepted and awarded one of the 10 fellowships! I start on June 15th and will stay there for 10 weeks. I will be working in a lab to study micro- and nano-plastics. I am so excited, it is an amazing opportunity!

I hope to begin serving as an academic mentor in the future. My time with Angeline was really helpful in the college admission process. I would love to help and give back to the new students! CREO has helped my family and me so much.