Gayle King grew up in a household where it was never a question whether she was going to college. “I couldn’t wait,” she says, of attending the University of Maryland, where she double-majored in psychology and sociology. “Who’s going to be my roommate? What classes am I going to have? Filling out the application form.” But for many children raised in modest-income families, these conversations aren’t part of their upbringing.
“A lot of people know you have to do well on your SATs or ACTs or your parents are getting you a tutor,” King says. “What if you grow up in a home where nobody does any of that?”
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That’s why the “CBS This Morning” co-host has been excited to shine a light on Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, a New York nonprofit with businessman Henry Kravis as its chairman. Its flagship program, SEO Scholars, enrolls 1,500 students into an intensive academic program; starting in the ninth grade, they receive instruction every Saturday and for the month of July — a schedule that continues throughout high school. Some 80 instructors unspool the curriculum, taught in the Socratic method, emphasizing critical reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and math.
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This boot camp yields impressive results: By the 12th grade, they have eliminated the gap as measured by SAT scores, and 100% of the kids are accepted into a four-year college. “Eighty five percent will be the first in their family to earn a college degree,” says William Goodloe, the president and CEO of SEO. “We see that as a way of breaking the cycle of poverty.”
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King has witnessed the kids’ determination after meeting with some of them for a tour of her digs at “CBS This Morning.” She also recently emceed an awards dinner for SEO Scholars that raised $4.9 million. (King is the 2017 Karma Award honoree.) “They’re teaching these kids at a very early age to get ready,” King says. “If you get kids early, you get kids who are really committed.”