Hold Fast to Dreams –A Book Recommendation

“I wish I always knew this was going to be possible.” A student named Kory who, having been encouraged to apply to higher education institutions after a lifetime of self-doubt, was accepted to a college. I had only read 35 pages of Hold Fast to Dreams: A College Guidance Counselor, His Students, and the Vision of a Life beyond Poverty before I experienced a moment of “happy tears” while on my morning bus ride to work. The book wasn’t clear about how long Kory’s feelings had been there, but it was apparent that he hadn’t tried particularly hard in school because to him, college wasn’t even a possibility. Yet suddenly, it was.

Hold Fast to Dreams by Beth Zasloff and Joshua Steckel is a compilation of experiences of students guided by Steckel, a guidance counselor who had recently left a private school in the Upper West Side of Manhattan for a public school in Brooklyn. The book was chosen as a #NACACReads book for the National Association of College Admission Counseling and as an admission counselor with social justice on my mind, I was immediately excited to start reading. While the authors only closely chronicle the experiences of ten students, there are many students in many high schools that face similar challenges before, during, and after college admission happens. Zasloff and Steckel do a commendable job of highlighting the diversity of hardships students from low-income backgrounds face without appearing exhaustive. Perhaps more commendable is that the narrative reads without the feeling of “white savior” that is often present in similar texts. Steckel uses his own privilege and resources to help his students, sure, but the authors also detail the extensive work the students put in on their own to pave their ways.

The narratives begin with stories about each student’s upbringing, including issues of homelessness, extreme poverty, immigration, familial struggles, gang relations, and health issues that influenced their outlook on their futures. Some of the students admit early on that because of their history, they don’t think they are even candidates to go to college while others use it as the fuel to power them through the admission process. Despite these challenges, Steckel encourages the students to take advantage of resources such as access programs and college visits to get inspired to at least apply. The stories then branch off to take a lot of different twists and turns—some stories seemed familiar and others I hadn’t even considered were possible. How does a student feel having to answer “what is the address of your permanent home?” on an application when they live in a homeless shelter temporarily? How does a student communicate financial aid document needs to a parent who doesn’t think a college needs to know that information or who works nights and the student rarely sees them awake? How do you choose between helping a student find the “best fit” and find the school that they can actually afford?

While the book is written to give a perspective of the college admission process, much of the book actually follows what happens to students after they are admitted. Students face challenges with the financial aid application process, adjusting to a more rigorous class schedule, and trying to form a community in a place where they are constantly feeling like they don’t belong. Some run into medical issues that were overlooked in their application essays, make frequent trips home to help family members, or have to take a semester off to save and afford classes. Each story is complex and yet you can imagine that none of the stories are entirely unique. There are many students living with these same obstacles. Some come from New York City like the ones featured here, but they can come from anywhere and attend any institution. The book has a nice spread of students who attended a community college, private residential colleges, out-of-state public schools, and historically black colleges and universities. And the experiences at each are equally as varied.

Overall, this book is a great read for anyone in education—not just admission professionals on either “side of the table” as we say. The stories are real and honest, and they suck you in right from the beginning so the 300 pages seem to fly by (as will the hour-long bus rides to work!). The authors conclude the text with recommendations for professionals in many fields such as education reform for immigrant students, more inclusive admission criteria review, and campus programming to support low-income students. The main take away for me is that supporting low-income students (particularly students of color) is about more than money. Some of these students were able to secure adequate financial aid packages, yet still struggled in their college experience. Our colleagues on the high school level can do a lot to help prepare students for college life, but we receive the students with all of their history as well, and that history is often missed by colleges—Zasloff and Steckel help to remind of us that while college is often seen as “leveling the playing field” for career advancement, not everyone comes to the game the same way.

Steve Jenks is an admission counselor at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY. He is currently the Communications Coordinator for the SCIHE Knowledge Community and the Vice-Chair elect for 2016-2018.