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Jacob Navarrete-Perez ’29 says Elon Academy brought “hope to a dream.” A first-generation college student, the incoming Elon first-year student said college was not something he knew would be possible until being accepted to Elon Academy.

“It’s a lot of pressure coming from a family who didn’t get the opportunity to grow educationally in the United States,” he said. “My parents are proud because it’s something that they couldn’t ever dream of doing.”

Elon Academy, housed in �������޹�����Ʒ’s Center for Access and Success, is a multi-phase program for academically promising high school students in Alamance County with a financial need and/or no family history of college.

Navarrete-Perez is part of the Rho cohort of the academy, one of the largest in the program’s history, with 27 students. He is also one of 10 students from the academy attending Elon in the fall of 2025, the largest group of Elon Academy students to attend the university.

The Rho cohort was recognized during the President’s Reception in May. Then, the academy welcomed a new cohort of scholars during orientation, followed by the Summer Academy in June, which includes three consecutive summer residential experiences prior to the sophomore, junior and senior years of high school.

“I get so nostalgic about the summer program,” said Navarette Perez. “It’s an opportunity that will stay with me for my entire life and showed me what college could be.”

While students in the program are not required to attend Elon for college, the program opened Navarrete-Perez’s eyes to the possibilities at Elon and helped lead to choosing the university.

“I was very introverted, very quiet, kept to myself. I didn’t have any confidence to put myself out there,” said Navarrete Perez, who was awarded the Leo M. Lambert Odyssey Program scholarship. “Thankfully, with Elon Academy, with their coaching, mentoring and all these opportunities, it helped me become a more confident man and more outspoken.”

Now, Navarrete-Perez is excited for his first semester, planning to earn both a bachelor’s and master’s degree through the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business Accelerated 3+1 Dual Degree Program.

Berenice Sanchez-Rosaldo ’29, who is also a member of the Rho cohort, says the Saturday programs held by the Elon Academy helped to navigate her journey to college.

“Having the Saturday sessions during the school year helps me make lasting friendships and strong relationships with my mentors who continued to encourage me every step of the way,” said Sanchez-Rosaldo, who received the Mac Mahon Family Odyssey Program scholarship. “I was able to learn new things about what to do, what not to do during my college application process.”

Sanchez-Rosaldo plans to major in political science, with the goal of eventually attending law school and becoming an immigration attorney.

“The immigration process is not easy,” said Sanchez-Rosaldo. “It’s a lengthy process and there are many different ways to go about it, and that’s something that many immigrants don’t know. I want to show people that there is a way to go about this, and it’s a way I would like to help my community.”