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25 Years of Community Impact | 25 Years of Milestones | 25th ​Anniversary Celebration | Giving Opportunities

CFEP: 25 YEARS OF IMPACT

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AN UNPARALLELED VISION

Now in its 25th year, the UCI Center for Educational Partnerships (CFEP) has impacted millions of racially diverse and underserved students, families and educators in communities across Southern California.
Read More
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A message from Assistant Vice Chancellor
​Dr. Stephanie Reyes-Tuccio

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Dear Friends, 

For 25 years, the Center for Educational Partnerships at UCI has worked to create the change we want to see in our world. Our collective vision is a future where every young person, regardless of background or circumstance, can fulfill their potential through the transformative power of education. This North Star mission, of expanding access and equity in education, has, for the past 25 years, fueled hundreds of programs, initiatives and partnerships that have changed the course of lives and reshaped our institutions. This success is only possible because of the authentic collaboration and partnership that serves as the foundation of all of our work. K-12 schools, community colleges and 4-year institutions, corporate partners, non-profit and community organizations, donors, families and students have all played a vital role in the successes we have achieved together on behalf of students across Southern California. This website features a brief history of CFEP and, throughout the fall, we will highlight 25 stories of impact: a sampling of the people, programs and initiatives that have made a lasting positive impact. We invite you to celebrate with us and support our community-based initiatives to enhance educational access and opportunity for future generations of Southern California youth.
​
Sincerely,

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Stephanie Reyes-Tuccio
Assistant Vice Chancellor, Educational Partnerships
University of California, Irvine

25 YEARS OF COMMUNITY IMPACT


9/20/21

AN UNPARALLELED VISION

Pledging Success
Now in its 25th year, the UCI Center for Educational Partnerships (CFEP) has impacted millions of racially diverse and underserved students, families and educators in communities across Southern California.
More

9/23/21

THE LEGACY OF JUAN FRANCISCO LARA

Pledging Success
The late CFEP founding director was an innovator in establishing educational partnerships, a community leader, and a mentor to thousands.
More

9/28/21

LIVING THE COLLEGE LIFE

Pledging Success
For more than a decade, CFEP’s Parent Residential Experience Program provided parents – a majority of whom did not attend college themselves, speak English, or attend school in the United States – the opportunity to gain exposure to higher education through a weekend residential experience.
More

10/1/21

THE DIFFERENCE MAKER

Pledging Success
Now a professor at UC Riverside and recognized by the National Academy of Medicine, Brandon Brown credits the California Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP) for helping him earn his bachelor's degree at UCI.
More

10/6/21

TRANSFER-TURNED-PRESIDENT

Pledging Success
At 19, Mike Muñoz hadn't thought much about life after community college, until he enrolled in CFEP's Summer Science Transfer Institute. Three years later, he graduated from UCI, and today is the interim Superintendent-President of Long Beach City College.
More

10/11/21

A FOCUS ON MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHERS

Pledging Success
In 2002, the National Science Foundation awarded CFEP a landmark $14.2M grant to implement a program, known as FOCUS, that would improve math and science achievement for more than 100,000 students.
More

10/14/21

DREAMING BIG

Pledging Success
Mayte Santacruz emigrated from Mexico when she was 10. Years later, she would transfer to UCI after attended the CFEP's Summer Scholar Transfer Institute. Today, she currently works as an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice.
More

10/19/21

CAREER PREP

Pledging Success
In recent years, and in an attempt to address larger economic inequities and quality of life for local communities, CFEP has bolstered its programs and partnerships that focus on career exposure and development.
More

10/22/21

A BRILLIANT FUTURE FOR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EDUCATION

Pledging Success
For a quarter century, the UCI Center for Educational Partnerships has proven to be a national model for successful college preparation and support, and in meeting the unique and diverse needs of the Southern California communities it serves. What comes next?
More

9/21/21

CHALLENGE SPARKS INNOVATIONS

Pledging Success
When founded in 1996, CFEP represented a new way of engaging students, schools and families. CFEP’s organizational structure and programming soon became emulated by other universities, particularly those in the UC system.
More

9/24/21

EARLY OUTREACH, EARLY INNOVATOR

Pledging Success
Established in 1976, the Early Academic Outreach Program predates CFEP. Nevertheless, it thrives to this day, reaching approximately 12,000 students per year through its through its various academic enrichment programs, academic advising, test preparation programs, and college enrollment workshops.
More

9/29/21

BUILDING LIFELONG CONNECTIONS AT CAMP

Pledging Success
Established in 1991 with a grant from the National Science Foundation, the California Alliance for Minority Participation provides minoritized students with information, resources, and opportunities to increase their science identity, build community, and help them realize, and maximize, their full potential in STEM.
More

10/4/21

THE CAREER LAUNCHER

Pledging Success
CFEP not only improves college access and undergraduate support, but also launched the administrative career of several community college administrators across Southern California.
More

10/7/21

SAGE SCHOLARS SPARKS SUCCESS

Pledging Success
Established In 1999, the Student Achievement Guided by Experience (SAGE) Scholars Program provides high-performing, low-income students with training, mentorship, financial support and paid internships at local companies. In 22 years, 100% of students in the SAGE Scholars Program have graduated from UCI.
More

10/12/21

THE STEM TEACHING PIPELINE STARTS HERE

Pledging Success
The UCI CalTeach program allows undergraduates majoring in a STEM field to earn both their bachelor’s degree and a teaching credential in four years. UCI CalTeach students graduate as in-demand ‘expert novices’, who are also equity-focused change agents.
More

10/15/21

EDISON ENERGIZES THE TRANSFER PIPELINE

Pledging Success
In an effort to boost transfer rates from California Community Colleges to UCI, Southern California Edison has funded more than $2 million in scholarships over the past two decades.
More

10/20/21

A BRIDGE TO HEALTHCARE

Pledging Success
Over the last half decade, CFEP received two Johnson & Johnson Bridge to Employment grants – three-year awards meant to increase the number of underserved students who enroll in college and who are interested in pursuing health careers.
More

9/22/21

THE PARTNERSHIP BLUEPRINT

Pledging Success
Established in 1983 in response to data that revealed an increasing number of Latinos in the Santa Ana community were becoming less academically prepared for college, the Santa Ana Partnership has served as a national model of how to send more youth to college and ensure their success.
More

9/27/21

CHANGING COLLEGE TRAJECTORIES

Pledging Success
Conceived on the back of a napkin, the Anteater Academy is a strategic learning community that increases the competitive admissions eligibility of its program participants.
More

9/30/21

MAKING CAMP HOME

Pledging Success
Two decades ago, Wendy Robello attended a pre-college summer program hosted by the California Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP). Today, she remains an active ambassador for CAMP, and recently established a scholarship in her name.
More

10/5/21

TAKING CFEP HOME

Pledging Success
A Compton-native, Keith Curry, president and CEO of Compton College and Compton Community College District, began his career working for CFEP and later earned his Ed.D. from the UCI School of Education.
More

10/8/21

THE DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY

Pledging Success
The daughter of immigrants and a first-generation college student, the Student Achievement Guided by Experience (SAGE) Scholars Program opened new worlds to Jemie Sae Koo.
More

10/13/21

THE HOME FOR TEACHERS

Pledging Success
The UCI Teacher Academy launched in 2018 to provide a home for K-12 teachers and school leaders to develop and enhance their professional practice. Through a multi-faceted approach, the Teacher Academy supports all teachers throughout the entire educator lifecycle – from aspiring teachers to senior administrators.
More

10/18/21

PLEDGING SUCCESS

Pledging Success
In 2017, UCI forged a powerful and unique partnership with the Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD), the City of Anaheim, and others to create the Anaheim Union Educational Pledge. The Pledge is a commitment to provide all AUHSD students with an intentional, comprehensive support system that integrates their families and is designed to ensure access to opportunities and services that prepares them to successfully complete their college and career goals.
More

10/21/21

THANKING OUR SUPPORTERS

Pledging Success
A thank you to all who have supported CFEP over the past 25 years.
More

25 YEARS OF MILESTONES

1976

Early Academic Outreach Program (EAOP) established
​at UCI in response to the State Legislature's recommendation to expand post-secondary opportunities to all California students, including those who are first-generation, socioeconomically disadvantaged, and English-language learners. The longest-standing program in CFEP, the UCI EAOP today reaches, on average, approximately 12,000 K-12 students a year.

1983

UCI, Santa Ana Unified School District, Santa Ana College and CSU Fullerton establish the Santa Ana Partnership. With a focus on close partnerships between UCI faculty and SAUSD teachers, and a ​variety of partners in tow, the Partnership revolutionizes educational partnerships for the next 38 years.​

1991

UCI receives NSF grant to adopt the California Alliance for Minority Participation, a program that strengthens the quality and quantity of underrepresented students receiving baccalaureate degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. UCI is one of six universities nationwide to be awarded the NSF grant. Today, CAMP exists on all UC campuses.

1996

CFEP is created in response to Proposition 209. Over the next 25 years, CFEP, through its multitude of programs, impacts millions of students and families across Southern California.


​

1996

Juan Francisco Lara named founding director of CFEP. Lara, who later becomes assistant vice chancellor for enrollment services, leads in the innovative structuring and design of CFEP, deciding to target K-12 students and families, K-12 educators, community colleges, and UCI undergraduates. Until his retirement in 2007, Lara amassed millions of dollars in grants and built a plethora of partnerships across Southern California.

1999

The Student Achievement Guided by Experience (SAGE) Scholars Program launches at UCI. The program provides high-performing, low-income students with training, mentorship, financial support and paid internships at local companies. Originally at three UC campuses, UCI is the only UC to still host a SAGE Program, which boasts a 100 percent all-time graduation rate among its participants.​

2002

UCI receives a $14.2 million grant, FOCUS, from the NSF. The grant supported a partnership between UCI and the Compton, Santa Ana and Newport-Mesa Unified School Districts to strengthen math and science education. The largest educational outreach in UCI history, FOCUS trained more than 3,000 K-12 teachers and impacted more than 100,000 students.
​

2007

Dr. Stephanie Reyes-Tuccio is named the second director of CFEP. Over the next 14 years, Reyes-Tuccio adds new programs and partnerships, establishes and grows three UCI student-support centers, helps garner more than $75 million in external grants and contracts, and oversees CFEP’s transition into the UCI School of Education. Reyes-Tuccio still leads CFEP as UCI’s first assistant vice chancellor, educational partnerships.

2011

CFEP establishes the Student Outreach and Retention Center (SOAR), which empowers student leaders to develop outreach and retention programs that shift the educational paradigm to improve college access, readiness, and retention rates for historically marginalized communities in higher education. SOAR continues to thrive in the UCI Student Life & Leadership department.

2013

Responding to input from undergraduates, CFEP creates UCI DREAM Center, which provides academic and social support to UCI’s undocumented population. DREAM Center grows from a single staff person to a center that provides a range of programming and legal services.​

2015

UCI is recognized by the New York Times as the No. 1 university in the nation doing the most for American dream. UCI again tops the Times’ “College Access Index” in 2017.



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2016

CFEP begins the Fresh Basic Needs Hub. Initially a mere shelf of canned goods, the Hub is now considered a national model of a basic needs resource for undergraduates. The Hub provides UCI undergraduates with basic needs such as food (including farm fresh food), toiletries and transportation while also promoting a shift in cultural consciousness toward understanding the fulfillment of basic needs.

2017

UCI forges a powerful and unique partnership with the Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD), North Orange County Community College District (NOCCD), California State University, Fullerton and the City of Anaheim to create the Anaheim Union Educational Pledge. The ambitious, innovative Pledge is a commitment to provide all AUHSD students with an intentional, comprehensive support system that integrates their families and is designed to ensure access to opportunities and services that prepares them to successfully complete their college and career goals.

2017

 UCI is named a Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution and a Hispanic-serving institution. UCI becomes only the second member of the prestigious Association of American Universities to gain both AANAPISI and HSI eligibility. The designations demonstrate UCI’s commitment to inclusive excellence, and allow for future funding opportunities so that UCI can continue to serve as an engine of social mobility.


​

2018

CFEP is integrated into the UCI School of Education - the No. 7 public school of education in the nation - to leverage world-class researchers for its mission and support the growth of new research practice partnerships with local schools.



​

2018

With the generous support of the SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, the UCI Teacher Academy launches. The academy provides a home for teachers and school leaders to develop and enhance their professional practice by offering programs in teacher preparation, professional development, teacher leadership, and administrator leadership. 

​

2018

CFEP receives a $5.6 million GEAR UP grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The seven-year project provides multiple activities and services to more than 1,000 students in the Compton Unified School District as they progress from sixth grade through freshman year of college.

​

2019

UCI receives more college applications from in-state freshmen and transfer students than any other UC school. Additionally, UCI is the No. 1 choice among first-generation freshmen; Asian American in-state freshmen and transfers; Chicano/Latino in-state freshmen; and the No. 1 choice among all underrepresented groups from California. Nearly half (48 percent) of the university’s in-state freshmen applicants were first-generation students.

25th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

For the past 25 years, the UCI Center for Educational Partnerships has proven to be a national model for successful college preparation and support, and in meeting the unique and diverse needs of the Southern California communities it serves.

In November 2021, CFEP kicked off its silver anniversary year with a reception on the beautiful campus of UCI! Guest speakers included UC President Michael V. Drake; UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman; Yvette Gullatt, Vice President for Graduate and Undergraduate Affairs, Vice Provost for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and Chief Diversity Officer for the University of California; and School of Education Dean Richard Arum. The event was emceed by Stephanie Reyes-Tuccio, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Educational Partnerships at UCI.

Please enjoy the links below to photos, a complete video and a highlight video of the event, as well as a video summarizing some of CFEP's new initiatives.
PHOTO ALBUM
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View Photo Album
EVENT VIDEO
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Watch full Event
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
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Watch highlights
FUTURE PROJECTS
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learn more

GIVING OPPORTUNITIES

Your support is critical to achieving CFEP's mission to advance equitable, accessible, and effective learning for all. We are investing in programs, diversity scholarships, and community collaborations to prepare all learners to thrive in our dynamic future. To discuss ways to give, please contact the Development Office.
Make a Gift
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Jennifer Stameson
Executive Director of Development


​3200 Education
Irvine, CA 92697-5500
949.824.1962
jastames@uci.edu
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