Summer school with a purpose: Denver teens spend summer break prepping for a future in STEM

While many teens are sleeping in or heading off to summer jobs, 22 high school students in Denver are trading their break for something they say is bigger -- a head start on college and a potential full-ride scholarship.

Inside the Campos Foundation's downtown headquarters, classrooms buzz with activity. Students dive into calculus, chemistry, and physics -- not for a grade, but for a goal.

"Honestly, as a teenager, it's really hard to say 'I want to wake up at 9 and go to school,'" admits Cayley Perez, a rising junior. "But this doesn't feel like school. It feels like a learning opportunity -- different from any other class I've been in."

Cayley and her classmate Prince Sunday-Ukpong are both entering their second summer with the Campos Foundation's Summer Bridge Program, a five-week intensive designed to build confidence, sharpen STEM skills, and prepare students for success in higher education.

"I've always liked math and the logistics of things," Cayley says. "Civil engineering has always been something I want to do."

Founded by Deanna Campos-Miller, the Campos Foundation launched the Summer Bridge Program to help students -- especially those who are underrepresented in STEM -- make the leap from high school to college. The program specifically targets students from all eight Denver Schools of Science and Technology campuses. Many are the first in their families to attend college.

"Our promise to these kids is that half of them will receive full-ride scholarships from us to the University of Colorado Boulder," says Campos-Miller. "Most of these students are first-gen. They want to change the world -- and we want to help facilitate that."

Beyond the academics, the Campos Foundation offers wraparound support: covering transportation, creating a customized learning space, and offering a stipend so students don't have to choose between learning and earning. Last year, one student used her stipend to help her mom pay rent.

"It's something that's helping a bigger purpose," Cayley says. "And we get to be part of the 22 students who get that support."

The program runs weekdays through July 18, and includes classroom learning, field trips, and mentorship from college professors and professionals in STEM. But its real impact is harder to quantify -- these teens are walking into a future they once thought was out of reach, now with the tools, the training, and the belief that they belong.