Entire 3rd Grade Class At Bernard Black Promised Full Rides To College

PHOENIX, AZ — The third grade class at Bernard Black Elementary school, and their parents, won't have to worry about paying for college, thanks to a promise of full-ride scholarships from the Rosztoczy Foundation.

“I am very happy because I do want to go to college like my sisters,” said Abisail Castaneda, one of the 63 students in Bernard Black's third grade class.

The foundation announced the plan last week to provide a full-ride scholarship to each current member of the elementary's third grade class, surprising students and parents who had shown up for a meeting, unaware that a potentially life-changing announcement was coming.

"It will be a big difference," said Abisail's father, Asael Castaneda. "He has secured the scholarship and will not limit himself to worry about which career and money troubles."

Principal Pamela Vigil hopes that the promise of a free ride to college pushes the school's third grade to "work hard, stay focused, be motivated."

Vigil added that she hopes it inspires the students to put in the effort to gain the important foundational skills they need to successfully move on to and graduate from high school

"I want every student to know that they have a promise of a college education and that with this promise, a world of opportunity is at their fingertips," Vigil said.

This is the second time the Rosztoczy Foundation has offered scholarships to an entire class of third graders in the Valley. The first promise was made around 10 years ago to the third grade class at Michael Anderson School in Avondale. Those third grade students are now in their freshman year of college, and the success stories of some of those students are what inspired the foundation's board to do it again, said foundation trustee Tom Rosztoczy.

Prior to both promises, the foundation looked for schools with a fairly large student student population that was economically disadvantaged and for a school and district with a great leadership team.

"If we are willing to pay for those kids to go to college, but by the time they graduate from high school, they're not academically prepared, the offer really doesn’t do them any good," Rosztoczy said.

In the current school year, around 78 percent of Bernard Black students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch, according to an Arizona Department of Education report.

Rosztoczy's own children never had to worry about paying for college, and always knew they were expected to go, and he and his wife decided they wanted to provide the same opportunities for children in Phoenix-area public schools.

"Our thought process here is that if we start young enough, those kids can think about college as a part of growing up, and money’s off the table," Rosztoczy said.

The foundation asked around and was repeatedly told of Superintendent Quintin Boyce's excellent leadership at Roosevelt School District. Boyce's team chose Bernard Black as the recipient of the scholarships, and the foundation decided to go with third grade again in an effort to inspire the young students to try their best from here on out.

Rosztoczy also hopes that this gift and incentives provided to the district will help inspire not only Bernard Black's third grade class, but the rest of the school's students, its teachers and its leaders.

Right now the foundation has promised to provide full-ride scholarships to all the students who were enrolled in Bernard Black's third grade class when the announcement was made last week. But if the class meets or beats certain academic standards, the foundation will renew its offer when the class graduates 8th grade, to include any students who have joined since third grade.

"Our hope is that in next five years Bernard Black figures out how to help those kids perform well academically and the district spreads what it learned at Bernard Black to rest of district, lifting all students," Rosztoczy said.

To qualify for the scholarships, members of the third grade class must graduate from eighth grade at Bernard Black and go on to graduate from Phoenix Union High School District. Then they must be accepted to a college, and maintain at least a 2.0 grade point average and take at least 12 credits each semester. The scholarships will pay for tuition, room and board for up to four years at a four-year Arizona college and will pay for tuition and books at a community college.

“I want to graduate like my brother and sister," said the younger Casteneda. "I want to become a doctor like my sister.”

The Rosztoczy Foundation was founded by Tom Rosztoczy's parents in 2005 and aims to help create opportunities for people, especially children.