2 interesting stories about student success

At Berkeley, math major — and soon-to-be doctoral student — María Guadalupe Martínez swapped one dream of helping people for another
A student who started out in what would be considered "developmental math" (pre-calc) at Berkeley's Summer Bridge Program and went on to be admitted into Berkeley's graduate math program-- literally one of the best in the world. Maria started out by using the Learning Centers services relentlessly, and then tirelessly delivering them ...
http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2010/05/12/martinez/

Ohio man says 'bypassing' college a mistake
He had to take additional classes beyond the core curriculum to make up for the lack of college prep classes he missed taking in high school. Despite the extra workload, he graduated with honors in June of 2011.
"When I was in high school, I was told that I was not 'college material,'" he said. "Yet, I discovered later in life, that wasn't true."
See the full article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/07/28/return.to.school.sinclair.college/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1