Benefits to colleges

• CDI Scholars benefit from comprehensive counseling and academic support to build their confidence and skills. They receive leadership training and participate in on-going community service and cultural activities. They develop a strong work ethic and desire to excel, and they enter college ready to hit the ground running.
• CDI helps Scholars and their high schools build relationships with colleges. We host college representatives for on-site meetings with prospective applicants, help to strengthen commections between selective colleges and Scholars’ high schools, and take students to visit a variety of college campuses.
• CDI provides detailed, tailored Scholar evaluations with every college application, highlighting relevant personal and family information, to assist admission officers in determining whether a student would be a good fit for their school.
• CDI assists Scholars and their families in making informed college choices. In the summer before Senior year, CDI counselors meet with each Scholar and family. Together, we create a tailored college list that reflects not only the student’s interests and needs, but also the family’s values. Scholars then research and hone choices to confirm the fit. In April, when college decisions have been received, CDI counselors again meet with each family to review offers, follow up with admission and financial aid offices as needed, and confirm each Scholar’s final college choice.
• Throughout the Scholars’ college experiences, CDI stays in close touch with them and their families, helping them adjust to life away from home, advising them on curriculum, and connecting them with campus resources, thereby vastly improving the likelihood of each student’s success, retention, and on-time graduation.
• CDI Scholars are leaders on their college campuses, earning academic, athletic, and service awards. They proudly serve as role models and mentors for younger students in their chosen colleges and, when they return home, in their high schools and communities. They enthusiastically share their own special experiences about their colleges, acting as de facto recruitment agents.