Florida students trade sun for snow to earn college degrees

by Amanda Harley

Sometimes, you must make a few sacrifices in pursuit of a dream.

For Marc Dorcin, a resident of Immokalee, Florida, one of those sacrifices is foregoing 76-degree weather in the heart of winter to study social work at Roberts Wesleyan University.

Dorcin isn’t the only Immokalee native on campus, either. Eight students from that same small farming community are studying and living this year at Roberts, which established a partnership several years ago with Immokalee-based Guadalupe Center. The nonprofit education provider offers a college-preparatory Tutor Corps Program that connects promising students like Dorcin with educational opportunities to springboard their careers.

“Immokalee is a small, low-income community where many students are the children of farmworkers, day laborers and hospitality workers,” said Dawn Montecalvo, president and CEO of Guadalupe Center. “Education opens the doors to endless possibilities and offers students an opportunity to pursue the career of their dreams, and our goal is to create a cycle of prosperity in Immokalee instead of continuing the cycle of poverty that has persisted for generations.”

The Tutor Corps Program provides college and career readiness programs, ACT and SAT test prep, mentorships, financial literacy and scholarship assistance, as well as wages for tutoring younger students. The program has an incredible 100% college acceptance rate.

Bringing Florida students to Rochester
A combination of scholarships from Roberts and Guadalupe Center, along with grants and work study programs, cover nearly all expenses, which include tuition, room and board, books, fees and incidentals. Both organizations connect students with generous donors to make sure students have a laptop, dorm room essentials and school supplies, as well as winter clothing and warm blankets.

“The cost of college, not academic ability or ambition, is what prevents many students from pursuing a degree,” said Jorge Perez, college director of the Tutor Corps Program. “Removing financial barriers helps get these students on campus; from there, it’s up to them to perform in the classroom.”

To date, 244 Guadalupe Center alums have earned college degrees and launched their careers in health care, education, business, engineering, computer science, criminal justice and other fields. Over the past five years, the proportion of Immokalee adults with a bachelor’s degree has increased from 4.8% to 7.7%. Meanwhile, the community’s poverty rate has dropped from 43.4% to 28.4%.

“Guadalupe Center is not the sole factor for those percentage swings, but it has delivered a jolt of energy to a community that for generations had educational attainment rates among Florida’s lowest and poverty rates among the highest,” Montecalvo said. “We expect the pendulum to keep swinging with a pipeline of talented students continuing their education in Rochester and other communities that are home to elite institutions.”

During the 2023-24 academic year, 160 Guadalupe Center students are on campuses nationwide pursuing college degrees, and 125 high school students are on the path toward higher education.
About one-third of Tutor Corps graduates attend out-of-state institutions, including the eight students at Roberts. For Dorcin, the decision to attend Roberts boiled down to the best opportunity on the table, winter weather and all.

“I was offered an opportunity to be in the Global Honors Program here, and I wanted to explore a different environment from the community where I was raised while learning how to be independent,” said Dorcin, a 21-year-old junior who was born in Haiti and moved to Florida in 2010 to escape devastation caused by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake.

As for the winter in Upstate New York?

“It’s a struggle to wake up in the mornings, especially when you have an 8 a.m. class,” Dorcin admitted. “But then you think about what’s motivating you and where you want to be in the future, and I think about my mom and my sister. That always motivates me to get out of bed and go to class.”

An opportunity to learn, grow
Roberts created its Office of Diversity and Belonging to promote a campus culture where all people are safe, valued and empowered. Through its robust recruitment initiatives, including the partnership with Guadalupe Center, the undergraduate population continues to diversify.

“The culture in Western New York is very different from the culture in Southwest Florida,” said Rebecca Draper, an assistant professor of social work who serves as Roberts’ faculty liaison to Guadalupe Center. “Guadalupe Center students, like all students, bring different life experiences to campus, and these unique perspectives and voices help everyone learn from one another.”

After earning degrees, a few students have started their careers in New York City, Chicago and other metropolitan areas, but many return home to Immokalee and surrounding communities. Dorcin already is eyeing a return to Southwest Florida.

“Coming back to the community would allow me to serve the community that gave me a positive direction,” Dorcin said. “In a small farming town, you don’t have access to a lot of resources. As a social worker, I would be able to help people get the resources they need.”

“Around town, you’ll run into young adults who went away for college and returned, and are now working as doctors, nurses, teachers, financial advisors, social workers, business owners and other professionals,” added Daniel Martinez, high school director of the Tutor Corps Program and a former Tutor Corps student himself who attended the University of Florida in Gainesville before returning to Immokalee. “Education is creating a cycle of prosperity and brightening possibilities for students and their families. It’s helping an entire community climb out of poverty.”

About the Author
Amanda Harley is director of university advancement at Roberts Wesleyan University in Rochester. For more information, visit www.http://Roberts.edu.