Say Yes helps educate yuouth

On its 10th anniversary, half of the participants have gone on to college. In June 1987, University alumnus George Weiss told 112 sixth graders from Belmont Elementary School that he would help them get through high school and pay their college bills. Ten years later, almost half of these students -- who grew up in one of Philadelphia's poorest areas -- have chosen to take Weiss up on his offer and pursue some form of college education. Last Saturday the Belmont graduates gathered on Hill Field to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Say Yes to Education -- the program Weiss designed to provide them with tutoring, counseling, summer jobs and stipends in high school and pay for them to attend college through the year 2000. The majority of participants in Say Yes to Education have pursued college careers -- an opportunity few of their peers have. Dozens of members of Belmont's class of 1987 have already received bachelor's degrees, and two have even graduated from the University of Hartford, where Weiss is a trustee. Nineteen of the students remain in four-year college programs, including two at the University and nine at Hartford. Another 23 have earned two-year associate's degrees or are close to getting them. "When I started out, the experts told me that in this population group we would be lucky to get eight or ten in college," Weiss said. But he said that of the 62 students who graduated from high school, "we had 55 kids in some form of college at one point." "To me, this is phenomenal," he said. Some of the students have taken advantage of his offer to back them "no matter what" by maintaining a 2.0 grade point average, working full-time, or changing career goals. Weiss said the program has cost him over $5 million, but added that he would gladly spend more to improve the results. "As a businessman I am inclined to look at the bottom line, but I'm looking at this like a parent would," Weiss explained. "If I could double my cost and have twice as many going to college, I would do it in a New York second." Despite the success of the program, records show that 35 member's of the Belmont class of 1987 dropped out of high school and never took advantage of the assistance Weiss offered them. Some became juvenile delinquents and others were convicted of felonies as adults. Two are serving time in jail for murder and one accidentally shot his best friend to death. Four of the students died. Two were murdered, one was killed in a car crash, and another committed suicide.