The PUENTE Project at Modesto Junior College (MJC) is an academic, counseling, and mentoring program to support students in building the skills necessary for success in both academic and career goals while in community college. Students enrolled in the PUENTE project work closely with their Counselor, English Instructor, and Mentor to prepare for transfer to four-year colleges and universities.
Much like its namesake, The Puente Project aims at building and facilitating a bridge for students between their college and four-year universities by creating a sense of familia (which is Spanish for Family). In creating an MJC familia, the Puente Project wishes to build a nurturing learning environment that fosters not only academic growth and success but also personal achievement and community connection. Puente focuses on reading and writing assignments related to Latinx issues and authors.
With the help and guidance of Puente Project faculty, students gain access to exclusive
benefits:
To enroll, students need to be…
Once accepted to Puente, student must attend mandatory orientation prior to beginning the program.
Interest forms for the 2025-2026 academic year will be available in early February 2025. Once the form is completed, you will be confirmed to attend the Puente Project Orientation Session.
Date: To be determined
Time: By appointment, if eligible, Puente staff will directly confirm
Location: MJC West Campus, Yosemite Hall 118
Students enroll with the same PUENTE instructor for classes over one academic year
which creates a supportive environment for students through the curriculum.
The courses integrate Latino and other multicultural literature in combination with skill-appropriate scaffolding for texts that build in rhetorical and thematic complexity.
Students are also provided with an opportunity to use mentors and their communities as a resource for writing and to develop their relationships with their mentors.
The courses offer an environment that provide students with the support and motivation likely to enable them to transfer.
The PUENTE counselor provides academic, personal, and career counseling to prepare
students to transfer to a four-year college or university. To help build the educational
support network necessary for the students’ success, the counselor also integrates
the students’ families into the program.
The PUENTE counselor teaches a personal development (PD) class designed to enhance the students' college success. Relevant college and career success skills, information, and resources are available to assist each student in examining, planning, and setting her/his personal, academic, and career goals.
Our PUENTE mentors support the PUENTE counselor and English instructor by motivating PUENTE students to build the social and cultural capital they will need for their future success as college students and career professionals.
All PUENTE Mentors are trained to follow mentoring guidelines and serve as successful career role models to their student mentees. Our experience shows that mentoring is inspiring to BOTH mentors and their Puente student mentee.
Puente’s mission is to increase the number of educationally underrepresented students who enroll in four-year colleges and universities, earn college degrees and return to the community as mentors and leaders to future generations.
