Two 2003 DePauw Graduates Appear in People Story on the Posse Foundation

October 27, 2004

October 27, 2004, Greencastle, Ind. - A caption accompanying a photograph in the October 18 issue of People magazine states, "Students like DePauw University graduates Melissa Reyes and Paolo Romero 'help change the way people understand diversity,' says Bial." The picture of the 2003 DePauw graduates, which appears on page 90, is part of a two-page article on the Posse Foundation and the program's founder, Deborah Bial.

The Posse Foundation identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential, who may be overlooked by the traditional college selection process. The Foundation extends to these students the opportunity to pursue personal achievement and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multi-cultural teams ("posses") of 10 students. The Foundation's partner universities acknowledge Posse Scholars by awarding them four-year, full-tuition, leadership scholarships. DePauw hosts two Posses each year -- one from New York City and the other from Chicago -- and has been a Posse partner since 1996.

"The 944 Posse kids who have passed through the program have a graduation rate of more than 90 percent as opposed to the roughly 42 percent national average rate for most black and hispanic students," write Jennifer Wulff and Hope Hamashige in People. Bial tells the magazine, "This is not an affirmative action program. Schools want Posse scholars because they bring diversity and leadership to the campus."

The Posse Foundation's partnership with DePauw was also noted in an October 17 article in the Washington Post (read more here). Access a Lumina Foundation article that tells of DePauw's Posse success here. This spring, DePauw President Robert G. Bottoms was honored as a "Posse Star."  Read more here.

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