Rooted in community. Rising through opportunity.
Educational opportunities, mentorship, and community engagement for high school and college students across California's Central Coast.
The Program
Students already carry knowledge and experience. Together, we create opportunity.
Central Coast Scholars connects high school and college students across California's Central Coast with educational opportunities, mentorship, and meaningful community experiences. Through workshops, professional exposure, community-based learning, and student-led activities, participants explore their interests, develop new connections, and engage with the people, histories, and communities around them.
Central Coast Scholars recognizes the knowledge, experiences, and strengths students bring from their families and communities. These serve as a foundation for exploring educational and professional opportunities, strengthening their sense of identity, asking critical questions, and developing their capacity to contribute to their communities. Through its initiatives, students have opportunities to learn from one another, connect with mentors and professionals, and pursue their interests and aspirations.
We envision a Central Coast where young people see higher education and meaningful careers as within reach, where their cultures and lived experiences are valued, and where they have a community of support as they pursue their aspirations. As scholars, professionals, and community leaders, they can also help open doors for those who follow.
The Four Pillars
These pillars are interconnected and guide both initiatives.
Students explore educational and career possibilities and build the knowledge to make informed decisions about their futures. Through practical guidance and exposure to different opportunities, students develop greater familiarity with college pathways, financial aid, career exploration, and professional development.
College and transfer prep, financial aid and scholarship workshops, career exploration, campus visits.
Students explore the knowledge, strengths, histories, and relationships they carry from their families, cultures, and communities. These experiences provide a foundation for understanding their identities, recognizing their contributions, and pursuing their educational and personal aspirations.
Identity and community reflection, family and community storytelling, exploration of local histories and cultures, discussions about educational journeys.
Students build meaningful relationships with college students, graduates, and professionals who share their experiences, provide guidance, and offer insight into educational and career opportunities. Where possible, students are connected with volunteer mentors based on their interests and aspirations.
Collegiate and alumni panels, conversations with professionals, individual and group mentorship.
Students have opportunities to develop their voices as leaders, contribute ideas, and participate in activities that strengthen their communities. Through collaboration, service, and student-led projects, they explore ways to apply their knowledge and experiences toward meaningful community contributions.
Community service activities, student-led initiatives, peer support, community learning opportunities and events.
Our Approach
For high school students
VOICE is a 12-session curriculum that brings students together to explore identity, local histories, and community issues through dialogue, collaborative learning, and a student-led project.
See VOICEFor college students
College and Career Connections is an initiative offering educational workshops, career exploration, and community service opportunities that help students pursue their aspirations and engage their communities.
Stay Connected
Workshops, mentorship, campus visits and community days run through the year. Leave your email and we will tell you what is coming up and how to take part.
Notes on what is coming up and how to join in. Nothing else, and you can unsubscribe in a click.
Locally Rooted
Program Developer, Central Coast Scholars
A proud Lompoc High School graduate and first-generation college student, Victor DeAlba's experiences growing up on the Central Coast shaped his commitment to education and community. Supported by his family and community, he began his higher education journey at Allan Hancock College, earning an associate degree in Sociology before transferring to UCLA. He later earned his Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from The Pennsylvania State University.
His personal experiences and research continue to inform his passion for creating educational opportunities that recognize the knowledge, strengths, and aspirations of young people. Guided by a commitment to give back to the communities that shaped him, he developed Central Coast Scholars through Central Coast Knowledge Institute, alongside the Lompoc VOICE Initiative.
Support Our Work
The Gamma Scholar Foundation brings people and resources together to advance education, cultivate leadership, and strengthen the communities we serve. Our commitment is simple: turn shared knowledge and resources into meaningful action.
Your support can help expand educational workshops, mentorship, student-led projects, and community learning opportunities across the Central Coast. Whether through financial contributions, resources, or community partnerships, every form of support helps strengthen these initiatives.