Passing the Torch describes the remarkable achievements of public
university students from marginalized populations who transcend
oppression and poverty to become powerful leaders for social justice.
Ruth and Bill Goldman drew upon their expertise in mental health and
higher education to launch a scholarship program in the San Francisco
Bay Area which provides assistance to people of color, recent immigrants
and others from marginalized populations, in order to help them become
leaders for social change. In addition to tuition assistance, they offer
a package of wrap around benefits to replicate the support higher income
students receive from their families. To date, every single participant
graduated from college and more than seventy percent earned graduate
degrees from prestigious universities. Ruth Goldman's personal story as
a Holocaust survivor and Bill's as the grandson of Jewish refugees who
fled discrimination inform the program and draw a parallel to the plight
of modern day refugees and the disenfranchised seeking opportunity in
the United States today. Passing the Torch shows how the New Leader
Scholars overcome poverty and discrimination in order to acquire an
education while sustaining their idealism as they strive to achieve
greater equity and justice for all.
