Analyze why Hispanic students drop out of college and develop institution-specific solutions to redress this problem. Work to maintain a diverse faculty and support faculty working as mentors of Hispanic students. This project increases the number of Hispanic students attending four-year colleges, earning degrees, and returning to the community as leaders. The main components of the program involve counseling, mentoring, and English language skills. Students begin in the ninth and tenth grades with activities involving school guidance counselors and mentors.
All students participate in the program's statewide writing portfolio assessment as well.
An additional 41 percent of Puente students attended California community colleges. The central themes of ESP are working on challenging mathematics and forming social groups based on common academic interests. Students spend six hours per week in an intensive ESP section. Since the work is challenging, it drives student collaboration. This collaboration, in turn, facilitates forming friendships and breaking down stereotypes about who can do mathematics.