We analyzed the growth of the top ten percent of students within their respective schools over three years in a large sample of 1,000 schools across the country. Our researchers hoped to see if the high achievers in high-poverty schools had the same growth as students in more affluent settings.

Community -- it's one of those words that is so vague and overused, it doesn't mean anything -- until it does... then, it's magic.

When I was a senior in high school, I was accepted into the Student Rising Above (SRA) scholarship and mentoring program. They gave me the courage to tell my story of resiliency and survival.

Just as my bussing job built the foundation for my current career 10 years ago, Juma provides the building blocks to success that so many young people, especially those from low-income communities, are now struggling to find.

Recently my 12-year-old nephew began to improve in school. When I asked him how he did it he said, "You made me believe in myself." That's what Students Rising Above (SRA) did for me, and what I resolve to pass on to others.

SRA assists and teaches these kids not only how to get into college and take advantage of every grant and scholarship that might be out there, but they also pledge to work with them until graduation.

Alcohol and poverty tore my family apart. In the midst of the chaos, my dreams of pursuing an education seemed unrealistic. I didn't know how I would succeed because I had never seen anyone close to me do it.

What if we could narrow the achievement gap for the price of a tube of toothpaste? That's about $2.50, roughly half a percent of the cost of a laptop computer.

Juma's mission is to break the cycle of poverty by ensuring that young people complete a four-year college degree. Our award-winning model empowers America's next generation of workers from three angles.

Sometimes you need a breath of fresh air. I first learned about Students Rising Above (SRA)--an organization that helps low-income, first generation students earn college degrees--at a time when I really needed a lot of fresh air.

Imagine a new world of innovative, inexpensive and successful learning, where streets in rural towns in developing countries are lined with self-powered computer kiosks, and children from poor neighborhoods have the same ability to work with new technology as children in richer areas.

The first day that we walked in the classroom we realized that our job would not be easy. Half of the students were absent while many others were walking in late or walking out during the middle of the class.

My husband, Eddie, and I are proud and honored volunteer mentors for four amazing students through Students Rising Above (SRA). Two are current first-year college undergraduates, and two are high school seniors.