San José State and Morgan Hill Unified School District (MHUSD) have partnered together to create a guaranteed pathway to college for students in the district starting in the 2026-27 academic year.
The Guaranteed Pathway program offers eligible students at MHUSD a stress free path to college if they meet certain requirements to be eligible for the program.
In order to be eligible, students must meet their A-G requirements in high school which are the general courses such as English, math, social studies, science, world language, visual and performing arts and electives, according to the California Department of Education website.
This pathway offers various benefits for students and guaranteed admission is one of the many advantages. Dual enrollment is also offered in the program where students can take college courses while in high school, according to the SJSU website.
Carmen García, MHUSD superintendent, said this program will help students in numerous ways.
“It saves students money with dual enrollment. I call it a quadruple win because it gives students high school credit, college credit, GPA boost as an AP course and it’s free,” García said.
The students must also have a minimum 2.5 GPA in addition to the A-G requirements, according to García.
This program offers an increased access to college for students in South County and presents a pathway to achieve a degree, according to the SJSU website.
García is committed to her students and has been in this field of work for over 28 years, according to the MHUSD website.
She wants to eliminate barriers for first generation college students especially since she was first generation herself.
“The system took care of me, now that I am the quote on quote system, I understand the weight that I have on my shoulders and I accept that responsibility,” García said.
García was unanimously appointed as superintendent on May 18, 2021, according to an article by the Morgan Hill Times.
“I reached out to SJSU over 4 years ago requesting the guaranteed acceptance. When Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson joined SJSU, I renewed my request and she said yes and after that first yes it still took us two years to finalize the details,” García said.
After a long awaited process, the program was announced and a family info event was held at Live Oak High School on Sept. 25.
The event hosted MHUSD representatives García and MHUSD Board of Education President John Horner.
They were accompanied by SJSU representatives Teniente-Matson and Andrew Wright, SJSU’s Senior Associate Vice President, according to a Sept. 30 article by the Morgan Hill Times.
Wright helped develop this plan for the community of Morgan Hill in South Santa Clara County..
“This is really about giving access and increasing college rates from under-represented students in communities in South Santa Clara County,” Wright said.
MHUSD has Ann Sobrato High School and Live Oak High School within the district.
The district overall has 13 schools and currently enrolls 8,013 students, according to the U.S. News.
In the district, 60% of the high school students test a proficient level of reading and 30% tested at a proficient level for math, according to the same article.
Brianna Valdez, an alumna from Ann Sobrato high school and former administrative assistant at the school, said this is a huge milestone for the district.
“It’s great for all the students, some are stressed about college and whether or not they’ll go to a 4-year college and now they’re guaranteed a path to that goal,” Valdez said.
Many students feel overwhelmed when applying to colleges during their senior year of high school.
According to a report from the College Data website, 47% of high school seniors said the most stressful part of senior year is applying to colleges.
“This partnership begins with the class of 2026 so my counselors are already working 1 on 1 with the students to make sure that they are already A-G compliant that they make sure to be throughout the year,” García said.
The Guaranteed Pathway program could create some problems.
With the recent CSU budget cuts, there will be unfilled positions in faculty, cutbacks on sections of specific classes, eliminated certain programs, according to a broadcast on NBC Bay Area.
Wright said the program will not have any negative impact or change the acceptance rates of the university.
“I wanted to send a message that the students are supported by the entire community,” García said.
Wright mentioned there are more plans to expand this program and there will be updates to follow on what’s to come next for the guaranteed pathway.
“This is a golden opportunity for students to further their education. I wish I had this program available to me when I was in school, but I’m excited to see students take advantage of this opportunity,” Valdez said.
