Next Step

is designed and managed by Jennifer Mandel.

Over the last ten years, Jennifer has counseled over 450 students through the college application process, designed college admissions programs for other educational organizations, and works directly with national non-profit College Summit as a Director of College Counseling. Jennifer currently has her own college advising practice where she works with a caseload of students each year to help them apply and get into the colleges of their choice. Jennifer holds a master’s degree in education from UCLA and a bachelor’s degree from UC Irvine.

Through Get Lit’s NEXT STEP program, the Get Lit Players and Get Lit LA youth editors receive one-on-one guidance through the college research and application process. They receive preparation courses for the SAT and ACT, tours of colleges and universities, college essay writing workshops, and are presented with scholarship opportunities to help them finance their college educations. Through NEXT STEP, Jennifer and her team make sure each of our teens furthers his or her education by attending a four-year college or university after high school. Starting early in the academic school year, Jennifer provides monthly, one-on-one advising to each of the teen leaders involved in the Get Lit programs.

Why this is needed…

Due to budget cuts in Los Angeles, 85% of guidance counselors have been laid off or have shifted their focus from college admissions to elsewhere. This means that a student’s access to college resources has been all but erased. There is no preparation for the SAT, little to no guidance on the college application process, and poor advising on high school course selection. In the few high schools that still have guidance counselors, most high school students are “tracked,” meaning, only the ones in the top 10% receive quality college advising while the rest do not. This leaves the remaining students to navigate this tricky path for themselves. So, each year, thousands of kids who are otherwise college eligible and who should be going to a four-year college after graduation, do not. They fall off the path of being able to get themselves to colleges because they have no access to resources. Our Next Step program helps our Get Lit teens transition to their next step, and paves a way towards enriching their lives and becoming leaders in their communities.