​Mrs Karen Dessables, of Marist School Atlanta, shares an inspirational story for us on how an under-served student was enable to reach greatness through the program "Reach for Excellence"   

 ATLANTA-Reach for Excellence is proud of the success of Brandon Fountain, who first entered the academic enrichment program in 2009. Reach for Excellence is a three-year, tuition-free program, hosted at Marist School for underserved middle school students.

As a sixth-grade student it was already evident that given the opportunity, Fountain was determined to succeed. Never one to shy away from a challenge, he eagerly entered the program

Through a mix of academic, leadership and community based experiences, Reach for Excellence prepares middle school students to meet the challenges of a college prep secondary education.

 Upon graduation from Reach in 2011, Brandon, the only child of a single mother, went on to attend Marist School, where he excelled academically and in the performing arts. During his high school summers, he applied for and received scholarship opportunities to extend his learning experience in a variety of settings including the Galapagos Islands and Stanford University. Brandon went on to receive a bachelor's degree in computer science from MIT and is now a project manager at Salesforce in San Francisco.

The concept of raising the educational bar for talented underserved students is the essence of the foundation of Reach for Excellence. Brandon Fountain now joins 406 other graduates as shining examples of how exposure to a more challenging educational path changes both outcomes and lives.

For more information on Reach for Excellence visit www.reachforexcellence.org.

Thank you,
Karen