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121 Graduates of St. Louis NativityMiguel Schools
Honored at Scholarship Fundraiser That Generates $400,000

ST. LOUIS - An icon of St. Louis education and the inspiring success of 121 students from low income neighborhoods were saluted at the third annual St. Louis NativityMiguel Scholarship Dinner. The June 8, 2011 event honored former University of Missouri-St. Louis Chancellor Blanche M. Touhill and the 2011 graduates of the St. Louis NativityMiguel middle schools, more than 96 percent of whom will attend college-preparatory high schools. The dinner raised $400,000 to benefit the graduates.

"Currently, I work at City Garden Montessori Charter School where I hope to become a great teacher," said Shannon Adams, a De La Salle Middle School graduate, now attending Harris Stowe State University, in an address at the dinner. "I can only hope that through my teaching I could help change the lives of some of my students…or who knows, maybe even the world."

Adams is among the more than 90 percent of NativityMiguel graduates who have finished high school and are pursuing post-secondary education. Most are the first in their families to attend college.

The event was a collaboration of ACCESS Academies , which supports three NativityMiguel schools - Central Catholic Academy , Holy Trinity Academy and St.Cecilia Academy -- plus three independent NativityMiguel schools -- De La Salle Middle School , Loyola Academy and Marian Middle School , along with 21 area college-prep high schools.
Touhill, former chancellor of the University of Missouri-St. Louis, is a third-generation public educator. She was honored for her passionate dedication to the advancement and accessibility of higher education to all St. Louisans, particularly urban youth, over a span of nearly 50 years.

Funds raised will help bridge the gap between the cost of private college-prep high school tuition and the funds available from each student’s family, the scholarships provided by 21 participating high schools across St. Louis, and the financial aid provided to each graduate from his or her NativityMiguel middle school. The event will help more than 260 youngsters in the coming school year.

The NativityMiguel school model relies on rigor, results-tracking, and extracurricular and parental involvement. It includes extended school days (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and extended academic years (10-1/2 months), effective student guidance,tuition assistance, mandatory parental and community involvement, and four years of structured post-graduate support. More information on ACCESS Academies can be found at www.accessacademies.com

Harris Stowe State University student and NativityMiguel graduate Shannon Adams addresses the third annual St. Louis NativityMiguel Scholarship Dinner at the Chase Park Plaza in St. Louis. Behind Adams is Tom Nolan, executive director of ACCESS Academies, which supports three NativityMiguel schools.

Some of the 121 NativityMiguel students who were saluted at the third annual St. Louis NativityMiguel Scholarship Dinner. More than 96 percent of the graduates are attending St. Louis area college prep high schools.