Founded in Shared Values
Saint Mary’s Summer Camps and Programs Grows Partnership with Guadalupe Center
By BARBARA ALLISON
Twelve young women from Guadalupe Center of Immokalee, Florida attended Saint Mary’s Pre-College Institutes this year through their two-year old partnership with the College to offer summer enrichment opportunities to their students.
“For many of these students, who are often first-generation, college can feel like an abstract concept,” said Sarah Gallagher Dvorak ’99, Dean of Enrollment Management and Marketing at Saint Mary’s. “By bringing them to campus for our pre-college programs, they get to experience what college is all about. They live in the residence halls, engage with faculty, and visualize themselves as members of the campus community.”
Anita Herrera, Assistant Director of the Tutor Corps high school program at Guadalupe Center, agreed. “This partnership opens new doors for our students. It gives them access to an amazing institution that they may not have otherwise considered while also allowing them to build relationships with a college that is committed to supporting first-generation and underrepresented students.”
According to Gallagher Dvorak, “we more formally solidified the partnership this spring, with added benefits for the campers and a focus on building a pipeline of their students into enrollment at the College.”
These new benefits include financial assistance from the College for two Guadalupe Center students who ultimately choose to enroll at the College as undergraduates, with preference given to students who attended a pre-college program. The College also offers these students a fall visit from an admission counselor as well as expedited admission decisions for those who apply to attend Saint Mary’s.
Guadalupe Center began in the early 1980s as a church soup kitchen for migrant workers. Volunteers began to teach English language skills to the children of these workers, prompting a pivot to education in 1984 with the establishment of their Tutor Corps programs. Today, Guadalupe Center serves thousands of children annually, offering early childhood education, tutoring, and the college-preparatory Tutor Corps program, all in the effort to break the cycle of poverty.
This partnership opens new doors for our students. It gives them access to an amazing institution that they may not have otherwise considered while also allowing them to build relationships with a college that is committed to supporting first-generation and underrepresented students.
- Anita Herrera
Islande Victorin, RISE (Resilience, Inspiration, Support, Empowerment) Program Coordinator at Guadalupe Center, came to Saint Mary’s for the first time as chaperone for a group of students attending the residential camps in July. She loved the beauty of the campus. “Last year we sent 10 students, and I heard great things about Saint Mary’s,” she said. “Our students this year were equally excited about meeting new people in an experience that prepares them for college. There are academics during the day and the evenings are filled with social activities. It's a great pre-college program and the students love it.”
For first-generation students and students from underrepresented backgrounds, early experiences in navigating college are critical, according to Herrera. “Saint Mary’s staff genuinely care about our students,” she said. “They have been intentional about creating opportunities for them to visit campus, explore academics, and to learn more about the college application process. For our students, it expands what’s possible. For our families, it provides confidence knowing their daughters would be supported academically and personally if they chose to attend.”
This flourishing partnership that brings students from Guadalupe Center to pre-college programs at Saint Mary’s strengthens the recruitment efforts of the Admission team in the growing Florida market. “We're diversifying the population of our campers and building a pipeline into Saint Mary's for first-year students. The Guadalupe Center counselors help us arrange recruitment and yield events for interested students and promote Saint Mary's to all their students,” said Gallagher Dvorak.
These partnerships continue to offer young women an engaging, meaningful summer experience and exposure to different career paths. “What I love is that students come back with more clarity,” said Herrera. “Our students come home more confident. They realize they can navigate a college campus, meet new people, succeed in a new environment, and see themselves pursuing opportunities outside of what they may have imagined before.”
Gallagher Dvorak concurred, adding: “this direct exposure replaces the anxiety of “Do I belong here?” with the confidence of “I know this is where I belong.”
August 14, 2026