Welcome to Puente!

The Puente Project is an academic preparation program that for more than 25 years has improved the college-going rate of tens of thousands of California's educationally disadvantaged students. Its mission is to increase the number of educationally disadvantaged students who:

Enroll in four-year colleges and universities
Earn college degrees
Return to the community as mentors and leaders of future generations

Recent News & Events

2008-2009 State Budget:
The governor's proposed budget for the fiscal year 2009 was released on January 10: it includes across-the-board cuts in state spending, including at the University of California and the California Community Colleges to address a projected $14.5 billion state budget deficit.

Puente Honored with Mentoring Award
Puente was selected by the National Hispanic Mentor Association (MENTOR/NHEA) to receive a 2006 NHEA Workforce Leadership Award.

Gates Foundation Scholarship
Lourdes Lopez, a 2007 graduate of California High School in Whittier Unified School District and now a student at the University of California San Diego, was awarded a prestigious Gates Foundation Scholarship.

Intersegmental Program

The Puente Project is an inter-segmental program that is co-sponsored by the University of California Office of the President and the California Community College Chancellors' Office. The Program headquarters are in Oakland and site team partners — consisting of a teacher and counselor at each school/campus site — help to implement the program at high schools and community colleges across the State.