Very low income school chances of good/decent school? (Need hope)

Chance Me / Match Me
1

Average income for my city is about: $34,362 my mother has cancer and cannot work which provides us with no income my parents were never married and I am claimed under her. I grew up not liking school and have made a huge turn around in school especially in high school. I am currently top 15% of my class and take good classes for what they offer and I am in a Upward Bound program in which it prepares you for college. I am looking to get into a good/decent college I really don’t mind the location. (Really need some hope)

Information about high school:

2013-2014 Grade 09 Term 2
9th Literature and Comp Honors C 1.0000 0.5
Algebra 1 D 1.0000 0.5
Biology 1 B 1.0000 0.5
Computer Applications B 1.0000 0.5
JROTC 1 A 1.0000 0.5
Spanish 1 C 1.0000 0.5
US History 2 Honors B 1.0000 0.5
Credit: 3.500 GPA: 2.8571 U/W GPA: 2.5714

2013-2014 Grade 09 Term 4
9th Literature and Comp Honors B 1.0000 0.5
Algebra 1 F 1.0000 0 (Failed final but had a low D before the 2nd semester ended)
Biology 1 B 1.0000 0.5
Computer Applications A 1.0000 0.5
Drill/Ceremony S 1.0000 0.25
JROTC 1 A 1.0000 0.5
Spanish 1 B 1.0000 0.5
US History 2 Honors B 1.0000 0.5
VAR WRESTLIN VARSITY WRESTLING
Credit: 3.250 GPA: 3.1429 U/W GPA: 2.8571

2014-2015 Grade 10 Term 1
Varsity BOYS SOCCER
10th Literature/Comp
Honors B 1.0000 0.5
Geometry C 1.0000 0.5
Government/ Economics
Honors
A 1.0000 0.5
Integ Phys/Earth/Space Science B 1.0000 0.5
JROTC 2 A 1.0000 0.5
Leadership (Upward Bound class) S 1.0000 0.5
Spanish 2 A 1.0000 0.5
Credit: 3.500 GPA: 3.6667 U/W GPA: 3.3333

2014-2015 Grade 10 Term 4
10th Literature/Comp Honors B 1.0000 0.5
Algebra 1-2 (Make up credit) P 1.0000 0.5
Geometry B 1.0000 0.5
Government/ Economics Honors A 1.0000 0.5
Integ Phys/Earth/Space Science A 1.0000 0.5
Leadership S 1.0000 0.5
Math Intervention Navigator (Make up class) S 1.0000 0.5
Spanish 2 A 1.0000 0.5
VAR WRESTLIN VARSITY WRESTLING
Credit: 4.000 GPA: 4.0000 U/W GPA: 3.6000

Taking two STS Classes (US History II and Chicano Studies)
One AP English Class
Health
Intro to Engineering
Algrebra II

Class Rank 29 of 199 (15%)
ACT: Took it today I would say around 20
SAT: N/A
Cumulative GPA (Unweighted) 3.0400
Weighted GPA (w/Bonus Points) 3.3600
Varsity: 2x Soccer, 1x Drill team w/ Arms, 1x Wrestling
Academics: 1x Honor roll and 1x Academic Honor Roll
Clubs and programs: Upward Bound, Spanish Club, and JROTC Camp
Volunteering: JROTC Events (10), Middle school wrestling city (2), Wrestling camp to help kids learn about wrestling mostly with low income (2 weeks), Booster club concession help, Local school help, and Local help at a charity event. (Alot more to list but I can’t remember off the top of my head)

*Sorry if I make any spelling or grammar errors above.

2

The STS and AP classes are for next year the post got locked for editing it too much.

3

The situation that you had to overcome was very difficult, and I am sure that colleges will take that into account.
However a couple of questions.

  1. Can you afford college because based on your circumstances it doesn't seem like you can. I know a lot of schools have financial aid but very few provide full ride (with everything included like boarding and stuff).
  2. Who is going to take care of your mother if she has cancer? She probably needs someone to take care of her until she gets better.
  3. Your ACT score of 20 and your GPA of 3 are not the most impressive, so colleges may look down on your freshman/sophomore grades and your standardized test scores. I would say work your tail off junior year for that 4.0 Unweighted, and have your academics take precedence over your other activities (but obviously your mother's well being has priority over everything).

I think your best bet is community college. This does not mean that you will have no hope. I just think that it is the best route for you specifically as you’ll be close to home, it’s cheap, and it gives you 2 more years to really hit your full potential academically. By then, if your mother gets better, you should have a great chance of transferring to your state flagship.

Also, tell your school guidance counselor about what she thinks as she may have access to some need-based scholarships to special cases like you.

Good job to you for overcoming such a difficult time of your life and best of luck to you during the college admissions process! I’m sure you’ll be successful as you have shown great resilience these past couple of years.

4

Community college. Entry is typically open enrollment, so low grades and test scores will not be an impediment. It is possible that the cost of community college will be mostly or entirely covered by federal financial aid. In some states, successful completion of a community college degree guarantees admittance to selective state universities, to complete a degree.