It's an organisation that has helped hundreds of students gain an insight into what is needed to get into university and it is about the embark on another round of workshops for young people.

But it needs to raise $15,000 and will today and tomorrow hold tag days to try and the raise the money for this year's programme.

For the last three years Passports to College, a registered charity, has enlisted a team of skilled educators, administrators and mentors committed to improving the academic performance of middle and high school students.

PTC has also provided 300 students with many academic driven workshops, which focus on areas critical to academic development and key areas many colleges and universities look at when considering an applicant.

This year, Sandys 360 Aquatic and Enrichment Centre managing director Melvin Bassett has teamed up with PTC co-executive directors Robin O'Neil and Lisa Symonds, in an effort to provide a PSAT workshop for middle school students.

The goal of the workshop is to give students a baseline on where they are currently.

Mr. Bassett said young people needed to begin planning for their future and added: "Particularly in relation to college, which is critical. If you are not including that on your plans for the future, you are already in trouble."

When Mr. Bassett learned of the work that PTC was doing he wanted to join forces with them "because it is very much what we have in mind in relation to our enrichment centre, which is designed for educational purposes and this fits snugly with one of our goals, which is to help prepare our young people for the future".

He added: "Sandys 360 is what we call the first school-based community centre on the Island. The main aim is individual, community, and educational development."

The five-week workshops, which cover PSAT, SAT and skills building courses will take place at the Sandys 360, Bright Temple AME and in the Ernst & Young Training Room.

Mrs. O'Neil said: "The core subjects are reading, writing and maths, you can't get around it.

"We prep them with strategies on those three categories and for those that have achievement gaps, we bring them to grade level.

"And for those that might be on grade level, they are enriched. The SAT and the PSAT [elements] focus on the test taking strategies for those standardised tests."

According to Mrs. O'Neil, when some students are about to enter Bermuda College, they find they have to be brought up to university level before beginning their degree programme. Sometimes these courses last two years and only then students are able to start taking their Associate degrees.

"Studies show it is not uncommon, and in North America one-third of students are not reading on grade level, and thus we are not surprised that they have to be remediated," she said. "In Bermuda, it is the same thing."

Passport to College parent company is located in Maryland and Mrs. O'Neil brought the programme to Bermuda when she arrived in January 2006 from Washington, DC.

"The aim is to be a partner in education and to close the gap, to work with the parent, with the schools, donors in the community, so that they can be where they need to be, so that they can take our jobs.

"My mom volunteered in schools all our lives and I volunteered. And so my programme was birthed from the seeds planted from my mother and then me working with my son."

She added: "When children reach middle school and high school, it is time to prep, not retreat. You have to check their homework and be engaged."

Mrs. O'Neil started the programme with the intention of taking the students on college tours, but she discovered that when it came to the admissions process there were so many gaps in the application process forboth parents and students.

In addition to preparing the children for a university, PTC also prepares them for the workforce with mock interviews, filling out job applications, time management skills and financial literacy. Mrs. O'Neil accepts that everyone is not college bound. "That's a reality, but for those that are not going to university, we'll still make them eligible for the workforce. I believe all have the capability [to attend university], but they just need to be nurtured."

The programmes take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Sandys 360 Enrichment Centre. Interested parties can call 441-735-7277 or email lisa@passportstocollege.org or visit www.passportstocollege.bm for additional information.