From applications, to essays, Advanced Via Individual Determination assists seniors with preparing for college. From the moment school opened, AVID’s goal has been to equip its students for excellence.

“AVID helps students by allowing us to understand the stress and struggles of high school and better prepare us for difficult classes,” senior Addison Abucejo said.

AVID is a college prep course that trains students for applying to college, writing college essays, preparing for the SAT or ACT, building leadership and strengthening social skills.

Abucejo has been a part of AVID since the seventh grade. He has applied to Texas A&M University, Texas A&M at Corpus Christi, Tarleton University and Texas State University. He was accepted to most of these colleges and is waiting on an answer from Texas A&M.

“My favorite thing about AVID is definitely the people and relationships we build as we progress through the years,” Abucejo said.

AVID teacher Andrea Wichman has worked with the AVID program for 6 years. She facilitated a plan to help students in all aspects of school. From working in tutorial groups that help each other, to researching colleges to have more options, to hunting for scholarships and financial aid, Wichman’s goal is to get more students to apply and accepted to colleges.

“I love seeing students grow and learn lessons that will help them in school and in life,” Wichman said. “I want all students to be successful, and it fills my heart with pride when they do well in their classes and get accepted to college.”

Senior Charles Stroud applied to University Of Houston, University of Texas at San Antonio, Houston Baptist University, Texas State and University of North Texas. He got accepted to all of them and plans on attending U of H or UTSA in the fall.

“My favorite thing about this program is having a supporting class who has the same goals as me, no matter their background or ethnicity,” Stroud said. “We all want to help each other.”