I may be an outlier here, but I’m not convinced that Pomona is out of reach. Don’t get me wrong, I still think it is a reach given its admissions rates but hear me out. I got the strong impression from D26s college counselor that Pomona is very interested in getting more lower income and first generation students on campus. In addition to that, I have a strong sense that when looking at context, a student from Tennessee with a single immigrant mom with the challenges described who works 20 hours per week to support family, and managed a 4.0 (even not in the most rigorous classes)and a 1390 SAT is not obviously out of the running to me despite their numbers being low for Pomona. Especially if she can bring her SAT up a bit when she takes it in December, which doesn’t seem impossible on its face, it seems like a profile that Pomona might stretch for if they feel confident she can handle the academics. I am not convinced it should be ruled out for this student even though it is clearly a far reach.
On the other end of the spectrum, I’d consider Whittier as a potential safety. I don’t know what the NPC looks like, but my understanding is that they can be pretty generous with merit aid, but others here might have more knowledge.
I also co-sign the Scripps statements others have made here. It is a good one to add to the list.