Despite her diligence, De La Cruz struggled to keep up.
“Tell me about the naked mole rats,” a tutor asked her Oct. 22, the day before a Life Science midterm.
“Ummm,” she replied, staring at her notebook. 
It was the second tutoring session De La Cruz attended. UCLA officials say she missed other opportunities: A student like her probably had been invited to a summer program, and there’s also an academic advancement program she could have joined, said Thomas Lifka, an associate vice chancellor.
Lifka became exasperated when told De La Cruz hadn’t heard …

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
But De La Cruz slapped a Bruins sticker on her backpack, rejected the other schools and got a $10-an-hour job at the local Boys & Girls Club. She canceled her cellphone plan, dropped any ideas of going to prom and began applying for scholarships. She was rejected time and again.
“She needs to be more realistic,” her mother said after De La Cruz learned she had failed to qualify for two scholarships. Her mother also declined to help pay for her education but offered to buy her a prom dress. She …

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A San Pedro girl’s undocumented status means no financial aid. Money is tight, classes are tough, and just getting to campus takes 2 1/2 hours.
Karina De La Cruz wakes up in the dark on her first day of classes at UCLA.  
Pushing herself off a two-seat couch in the living room of a San Pedro apartment this September morning, she tries not to wake a brother sleeping in a twin bed next to her, or another dozing with his wife and baby daughter in the bedroom. De La Cruz dresses quickly …