From Top Student To Rock Bottom, Richmond Teen Now Back On Road To Success

by Sherry Hu and Christina Arce

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Only a few years ago, Richmond's John F. Kennedy High School student Alejandra Pulido didn't even give college a thought. But now she tells us, "a lot has changed," which is no understatement.

Alejandra has always imagined a life like in the movies with a traditional, happy family that does everything together. However, the reality was that she was six years old before she even met her biological father.

LEARN MORE: Students Rising Above

"For a long time I didn't know this man and I had to try to build a bond with him. Even to this day, I don't have a bond with him," Alejandra said. "That was one of the hardest things when I was younger. I wanted that support from my dad and I wanted to have both of my parents."

It was up to her mother alone to care for Alejandra and her four siblings, all born premature and one of which, her brother, was born with cerebral palsy. Alejandra had to learn new responsibilities.

"I tried my best to help her in any way I could," she said. "I learned how to cook when I was really young … I started to clean, help out around the house … I would come back from school and I would still help her and try to take care of my siblings."

Alejandra slipped from being the good student with straight A's and her education went downhill. "I couldn't fully focus on school because it was just a lot at home," she said.

For support, she looked to her friends who exposed her to a "different type of lifestyle." She went with the crowd, but it turned out to be the wrong crowd. Some got pregnant, some landed in jail, or worse. Alejandra fell into drugs. This took a toll on her motivation and affected her schoolwork.

It took her a while, but Alejandra eventually realized she and her friends weren't headed down the right path. "That was not me, it was never me," she said. "I started to realize I'm letting my mom down, I'm letting myself down ... because I knew I could do so much better."

She made the difficult decision to walk away from those friends she had known for so long because as she saw it, it was either "get stuck or get out."

Then one day at school, Maricela Juarez - a West Contra Costa County Program Supervisor - pulled Alejandra aside to discuss her future college plans and tell her about the a college prep program at Mills College called Upward Bound.

"She didn't know her full potential and I wanted to help her to see that," said Juarez. "She was a leader, but she didn't know she was a leader."

Alejandra believes it was her acceptance into Upward Bound that saved her and that Juarez and the people she met there were what really made the difference.

"If I didn't meet the friends that I met here, who actually want to go somewhere in life and who are determined to go to college, I would've never done the same," said Alejandra. "They already knew their path, they already knew what they wanted to do, and being surrounded by them made me think I need to think about my own path too ... Upward Bound did save my life. I will forever be thankful."

With this newfound determination, Alejandra is hopeful for the future. She plans to go to college and later pursue a master's degree, with her sights set on a career in social work. She's passionate about helping those who've been where she once was, particularly teenagers and foster children.

"Nothing has been easy for me and I have made mistakes along the way, but I have grown and learned from them," she said. "Now I am on the road to success."