Campus, community and business leaders recognized the achievements of local middle and high school minority students enrolled in a mentoring program in an event held at UC Berkeley Monday night.

Administered by the local nonprofit organization Stiles Hall, the Berkeley Scholars to Cal program provides black and Hispanic students with "comprehensive academic and social support," according to the program's Web site.

According to Stiles Hall Executive Director David Stark, 10th grade students in the program have an average GPA of 3.32, while those in a control group of similar students averaged 2.36. Additionally, he said that only 5 percent of black students nationwide scored in the top 50 percent on the PSAT, while 80 percent of those involved with Berkeley Scholars did so.

"Of course, there are lots of high potential African-American and Latino students," Stark said. "But as they move up the grades, many of them become less and less competitive academically for four-year colleges and especially top universities like UC Berkeley."

Students in attendance at the event said they were grateful for the program's academic assistance.

Brandon Small, a Berkeley High School sophomore, said the program has made his dream of attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology more attainable.

"It's helped me to realize my future and what I want to do," he said.

Berkeley High sophomore Benjamin Johnson said the program opened his eyes to the opportunities college offers.

"Without Berkeley Scholars, I don't know who I'd be," Johnson said. "It's definitely part of my identity."

Among those present at the event were UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates, Berkeley Unified School District Superintendent William Huyett and AT&T California President Ken McNeely.

Stark said he was encouraged that high-profile leaders were explicitly supporting programs to help close the racial achievement gap in local schools.

He added that the program grew out of a response to California Proposition 209, passed in 1996, which prohibited state institutions from considering race, sex or ethnicity in applications, and the resulting decline in black and Hispanic enrollment at UC Berkeley.

Students in the program are organized into cohorts of 20 to 25, according to Stark. Currently, there are two active cohorts, one consisting of sixth-graders from Longfellow Magnet Middle School and Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School and another of 10th-graders at Berkeley High.

Of the original cohort, 18 are attending a four-year university and two are going to community college, Stark said.

The eight-year program employs black and Hispanic UC Berkeley students as mentors for the scholars, who are required to attend afterschool programs twice a week and a three-hour Saturday session, according to Stark. Additionally, scholars must enroll in four months of summer school each year.

"We've identified really great people to be on the staff, and we inject ourselves into their families and academic journeys," said Leandrew Robinson, project director for the program.

Jeanette Scott, a UC Berkeley alumna and mother of one of the students, said the program is a useful conduit for access to top universities.

"I went to Cal, so I always steered (my daughter) towards that being her ultimate goal," Scott said.

Tags: BERKELEY HIGH SCHOOL, BERKELEY SCHOLARS TO CAL, STILES HALL, PROP 209, BERKELEY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT