taap
Meet the 2023 – 2024 Cohort of The Achievement Award Program (TAAP)
The Achievement Award Program supports high-achieving, community-minded, low-income, first-generation college students in their pursuit of a UC Berkeley education. The Cal Alumni Association (CAA) congratulates all twenty-two members of our incoming 2023 – 2024 Alumni Scholar cohort.
Becoming One’s Best Self
Senior TAAP Scholar Danny Muñoz ’22 hopes to one day create policies that better the situation of marginalized youth of color.
TAAP Scholars Take on the Lair
By Josephine ThorntonOn Friday, August 26, an incoming cohort of The Achievement Award Program (TAAP) Scholars and Alumni Scholars Program staff traveled to Pinecrest for a weekend at the Lair of the Golden Bear. The result—a weekend of bonding, hikes to the lake, sunshine, and of course, s’mores.
Making Dreams Achievable
By Jackie KrentzmanAs a first-generation student, Art Wong ’63 found his footing at Cal and beyond. Now, he supports other students so that they can do the same.
When You Drink Water, Remember the Source
One student pays it forward in his continued fight for social justice.
A Letter from the Executive Director | Fall 2019
Reflections on an epoch-making year for diversity and student excellence
Freshman Scholar Takes Flight at Berkeley
Justin Hogenauer ’22 dreams of becoming an Air Force pilot, but when it came to choosing where to go to college, he wanted a top-tier school—one that provided the kind of broad academic, professional, and social advantages for which Cal is so well known. “The Air Force Academy was an option,” he says. “But the […]
Creation of The Achievement Award Program
In 1996 California voters approved Proposition 209, which prohibited the consideration of race, ethnicity, or sex in the admission process at public universities. Immediately, the percentage of students at the University of California, Berkeley from low-income, minority communities decreased dramatically. As a result, the Cal Alumni Association (CAA), encouraged by Chancellor Robert Berdahl, formed a task […]
Celebrating 85 Years of Alumni Scholarships
Established in 1934 in the depths of the Great Depression, the Alumni Scholars Program now supports 800+ undergraduate scholars each year, awarding more than $2.2 million in financial aid.
A Letter from the Executive Director | Spring 2018
“It is a disturbing fact to me,” joked President John F. Kennedy in his 1962 Charter Day speech, “that the New Frontier owes as much to Berkeley, as it does to Harvard University.” Happy Birthday, Golden Bears! 2018 is an exciting year, marking the 150th anniversary of the founding of Berkeley—the shining star of public education. How […]
The Thrill and Awe of UC Berkeley
Independent and driven, Linnea Norton ’19 displayed leadership talent as a toddler with her earliest phrase to her mother: “Nea do it!” she protested. Now a recipient of CAA’s Leadership Award, Linnea continues to drive her own success. Prior to entering Cal as a transfer student and molecular environmental biology major, she studied veterinary science […]
The Value of My Public Education
Betty Yee ’79 made her first political act at age 13: a plea before city officials not to close the local school. The move would force her to bus to school, away from her responsibilities to her family business. Her act “was about giving a voice to people who didn’t speak English,” Betty says. “That’s […]
